Athletics Kenya Nairobi County vice chairman Gideon Nyangechi believes the fifth leg of the Athletics Kenya (AK) Track and Field meeting set for Friday at the Ulinzi Sports Complex offers a golden stage for athletes to fine-tune their skills ahead of the regional championships in May and June.
The Nairobi event follows the first weekend meeting on tartan at the Afraha Stadium in Nakuru on April 5.
The meet in Nakuru saw Samuel Gathimba crowned winner in the 15km race walk, while Sylvia Kemboi claimed the women's title, and Simon Mungai and Cynthia Chepng'eno claimed the 5,000m titles.
The circuit had earlier blazed through Kapsabet, Thika and Mumias.
The meeting, sponsored by Betika, has a prize money kitty of Sh1,170,000 and brings together athletes in eight track, four field and race walk events.
The track events include 100m, 400m, 800m, 1500m, 3000m steeplechase, 10,000m, 4x100m and 4x400m relays.
Winners in each category will pocket Sh20,000, while second and third-place finishers will pocket Sh15,000 and Sh10,000 respectively.
Nyangechi noted that the meeting will be run under World Athletics and AK standards, offering an ideal opportunity for serious competition for athletes preparing for the AK regional meetings.
The regional showdowns offer the 16 AK affiliates a chance to select teams for the national championships in June.
The track and field competition is a build-up for the 'Road to Tokyo', a campaign is designed to help athletes build momentum ahead of the World Athletics Championships in Tokyo, Japan, on September 13–21.
Nyangechi called on all registered athletes to collect their bibs in person at the event venue today (Thursday). No running numbers will be given on the competition day.
"Please note that registration and issuance of running/bib numbers will not be conducted on the event days,” Nyangechi said.
