World 800m champion Mary Moraa has set her sights on reaching the 4x400m mixed relay final at the Paris Olympics.
During last weekend's Olympic trials at Nyayo Stadium, the relay team of Moraa, Zablon Ekwam, Kelvin Tauta and Mercy Chebet won the event in a national record of 3:11.88.
Their performance edged out the Czech Republic's 3:11.98, securing Kenya the top 16 spot, which earned them an Olympic ticket.
Moraa hopes the team will retain the position until the qualification deadline is over and added that reaching the finals in Paris is the team’s primary goal.
“After making the top 16, we hope to retain that position till the qualification deadline is over. Come the Olympics, our focus is to reach the finals,” she stated.
Only 16 teams qualify for the Olympics with 14 teams having automatically secured qualification during the World Relays in Nassau, Bahamas, last month.
The qualification deadline is June 30 with other nations set to battle it out for the remaining two slots.
Countries already secured qualification include the USA, Netherlands, Ireland, Belgium, Poland, Nigeria, Dominican Republic, France, Bahamas, Great Britain, Germany, Switzerland, Jamaica, Ukraine, Italy, and Kenya.
Moraa also highlighted the stiff competition they face. “We expect competition to be tough,” she noted.
Poland, the defending champions, set the benchmark in Tokyo with a time of 3:09.87, followed closely by the Dominican Republic (3:10.21) and the USA (3:10.22).
Reflecting on their record-setting performance, Moraa highlighted the significance of their preparations.
“Running a national record is not easy. However, we have been preparing for this since failing to make the mark at the World Relays in the Bahamas. We were determined to secure the top 16,” she added.
Echoing Moraa’s sentiments, Ekwam pointed out that missing the Bahamas meet meant they had to put more effort into the trials to seal qualification.
“ I fell ill during the World Relays and had to pull out. Moraa also pulled out of the competition. The team’s performance was not good and we failed to make the top 14,” he stated.
“We went back to the drawing board and fixed a few areas in training to ensure we made the top 16 at the Olympic trials. I am glad we achieved our target,” Ekwam added.
On the first day of the Olympic qualification rounds in the Bahamas, the Kenyan team comprising Kennedy Kimeu, Chebet, Kelvin Kipkorir and Maureen Thomas finished last in Heat 3 clocking 3:19.90.
In the second round, the team finished fifth in Heat 2, clocking 3:18.76 missing out on the top 14.
