- The Cross Country Championship was to mark the start of an athletics season.
- The race was postponed indefinitely due to sponsorship issues, and new dates to be announced later.
- Athletes will now switch their focus to other athletic events including the AK series set to start on October 15 this year.
The annually held Isaiah Kiplagat Ndalat Gaa Cross Country Championship that was set to be held on Saturday 8th October 2022 has been postponed indefinitely.
Female Athletes compete in 8 kilometers race during the Ndalat Gaa Isaiah Kiplagat memorial 9th edition cross country in Nandi County. Picture/ Standard Digital.
According to Abraham Mutai, Athletics Kenya (AK) Central Rift chairman, the eagerly awaited race was postponed indefinitely due to sponsorship issues, and new dates to be announced later.
“We have been forced to postpone this race over sponsorship issues and a new date will be announced when we are sure and ready. The prize money will still be available,” said Mutai.
Mutai further called on athletes to now switch their focus to other athletic events including the AK series slated to start on October 15 this year.
The Cross Country Championship which has been held still for two years now due to the Covid-19 pandemic was to mark the start of an athletics season.
The postponed event was to be held at Ndalat, Nandi County.
The Ndalat Gaa Cross Country was renamed Isaiah Kiplagat Ndalat Gaa Cross Country Championship after the former Athletics Kenya (AK) Chief Isaiah Fundi Kiplagat by the current AK President Jackson Tuwei saying Kiplagat was the brainchild behind the race.
Kiplagat died in 2016 after battling colon cancer since 2010.
He took over the national governing body in 1992, Kenya Amateur Athletics Association (KAAA) by then. He was the longest serving sports boss in the country for up to four decades.
Ezekiel Kemboi entertains the former Athletics Kenya Boss Isaiah Kiplagat and His vice by then David Okeyo at Nyayo Stadium during the 2012 trails. Photo/Ondego/www.sportpicha.com
Kenyan Sportsmen will also be eyeing the 2nd edition of The World Cross Country Tour set to be held on February 4th, 2023 in Eldoret, Uasin Gishu County few days before the World Cross Country Championships that will be held on February in Bathurst.
World Cross Country Championship
The 44th edition of the World Athletics Cross Country Championships will be held in Bathurst, Australia on February 18, 2023.
Like many sporting sporting event the 2020 World Cross Country Championship was postponed from 2021 to 2022 due to coronavirus pandemic in December 2020.
However in September 2021 the event was again postponed to 2023 due to the covid-19 restriction by Australian government.
The 43rd edition of the World Cross Country Championship was held on March 30, 2019 in Moesgaard Museum, Aarhus in Denmark with up to 520 athletes taking part in the race.
In the senior mans medal individuals at the 434d edition, Uganda’s Joshua Cheptegei won the 2019 edition to claim the Gold medal while his compatriot Jacob Kiplimo finished in the second position to claim the silver Medal.
Geoffrey Kipsang Kamworo of Kenya settled for bronze after finishing in the third position
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