Team Kenya’s 3,000m steeplechase trio made it to the Tuesday final and promised to recapture the title that the country lost at the 2022 World Athletics Championships in Eugene, USA.
In an interview, Leonard Bett said their respective heats gave them a hint of what to expect in the final as each one of them ran against a top name.
“I ran against world record holder, Ethiopia’s Lamecha Girma while Abraham Kibiwott was up against world and Olympic champion Soufiane El Bakkali. On the other hand, Simon Koech had a chance to test Ethiopia’s Wale Getnet and Canadian Jean-Simon Desgagnes,” said Bett.
He said he believes they have enough time to sit down and discuss the way forward. “ I think we ran very relaxed races and Tuesday will be the moment of reckoning. At least we can share our experiences from our respective heats and see how well we can rectify before Tuesday,” he noted.
He said as far as they are concerned, they have done enough training and what they now need is mental strength.
“ I think we can not only match our rivals but beat them if we plan well. The good thing is that we all made it to the final and we can support each other,” he added.
“ We need to be strong because even they do not know what to expect from us. Lemecha, for example, was even telling me to slow down during our race, Can you imagine?” he joked.
Koech said he was careful with his steps because there was too much crowding and pushing. “ I am happy I finished third and now I can plan for the final,” said Koech who won the Monaco Diamond League.
Kibiwott was equally bullish, saying they have no injuries and will be ready for the final. “ I think we can hack it here but let us wait for the final,” he noted.
Koech sailed through in Heat 1 after returning at 8:20.29 to finish third behind Ethiopia’s Wale Getnet (8:19.99) and Canadian Desgagnes (8:20.04) who took the first two positions.
Abraham Kibiwott placed fourth in Heat 2 after clocking 8:24.31 behind USA’s Kenneth Rooks (8:23.66) and world and Olympic champion champion El Bakkali , who clocked the same time for second position.
Leonard Bett placed third in Heat 3 after timing 8:16.74 with world record holder Lamecha Girma of Ethiopia winning the race in 8:15.89. New Zealand’s George Beamish clocked 8:16.36 for the third position.
