Olympic champion Conseslus Kipruto will headline the men’s 3,000m steeplechase at Golden Spike in Ostrava, Czech Republic on June 28, organisers of the IAAF World Challenge meeting have announced.
The men’s event was last staged in Ostrava in 2013 when Kipruto, then a rising star in the event and still just 18, took a comfortable victory less than two months before racing to silver at the World Championships in Moscow.
This year the Kenyan returns as the reigning Olympic champion, one of seven already confirmed for the event. Rio winners Mo Farah, Wayde Van Niekerk, David Rudisha, Christian Taylor and Anita Wlodarczyk have already been announced, along with Germany’s Thomas Rohler who will headline a unique Germany vs Czech Republic match in the men’s javelin throw.
Rohler, who opened his season with a mammoth 93.90m effort in Doha on 5 May, will lead a German quartet that includes Johannes Vetter, Andreas Hofmann and Lars Hamann against a Czech squad composed of 2017 IAAF Diamond League winner Jakub Vadlejch, 2013 world champion Vitezslav Vesely, Jaroslav Jilek and Petr Frydrych.
The German team, which will be captained by 1972 Olympic champion Klaus Wolfermann, has exhibited extraordinary form and depth this season, with Vetter improving to 89.68m in Doha, Hoffman to 88.79m in Offenburg, and Hamann to 86.71m, also at the 13 May meeting in Offenburg.
On current form, the standout on the Czech squad, captained by throwing legend Jan Zelezny, is Vadlejch who has twice come within 20 centimetres of 88 metres this season. Each of the eight men will have six throws, with the best counting in the team tally.
Elsewhere, after a successful outing at the last year’s World Masters in Australia, Team Kenya is now preparing for the Africa Masters Championships set for August in Abidjan, Ivory Coast.
The country was represented by 15 athletes and returned with 10 medals (3 gold, 4 silver and 3 bronze) from the last year’s championships.
Francis Komu led a Kenyan podium sweep in the half marathon for the 40-45 years category, clocking 1:11.07. John Birgen (1:11.20) and Philip Metto (1:11.29) to bronze and silver respectively.
Other medallists included Paul Yego and Joshua Kipchumba, who won gold in the 10,000m for the 50-54 and 40-45 age categories respectively.
John Sang, Stephen Kamande and Stephen Kihara all got silver medal in the half marathon for the different age categories while Joseph Some Koskei got a bronze medal in the 10km (60-64 years) as Joshua Pondo won bronze in shot put (50-54). Head of delegation, Rose Tata Muya, said they have started their preparations for the event. “Already our athletes have been taking part in the Athletics Kenya weekend meetings in search for better performances because we could not hold our meets,” she said.
While thanking the government and AK for paying all the allowances, she said they are seeking for more help in order to participate at the Africa Masters set for August 25-27 in Abidjan.