Team Kenya to the 2025 World Relays championships in Guangzhou, China, on 10-11 May, continues to hon their skills at the Ulinzi Sports Complex, their designated base for residential training.
Under head coach Stanley Towet, the team have pitched camp at the military facility since the conclusion of the national trials two weeks ago.
The athletes have responded to his training regimen as expected, giving him and his assistants belief that they will be competitive in the Chinese city.
Key in Towet’s ambitions is to surpass the lone bronze medal the country grabbed at last year’s edition in Nassau, Bahamas, and qualify the teams for the World Championships in Tokyo in September.
His backroom has coaches Catherine Kagwiria, Thomas Musembi and Simon Riga with Edwin Kiptoo the physiotherapist while Kennedy Tanui is the team manager.
Speaking after Wednesday’s training session, Towet observed the inclusion of high fliers like Mary Moraa and Ferdinand Omanyala is crucial since they are used to the rigours of competing at the top.
And even though the duo is out of the country, Towet believes this will only work towards Kenya’s success at the World Relays.
Omanyala is in China awaiting this weekend’s Shanghai Diamond League while Moraa has travelled stateside for the Grand Slam Track meeting.
“Omanyala has previous ran with Mweresa (Boniface) and Babu (Meshack) and we therefore expect to experience no issues on race day,” he said.
Baton exchange has perennially embarrassed Team Kenya but Towet hopes to put this to an end.
“Handling of the baton has been a big issue for us for a long time, especially in the 4x100m but we are working to ensure that the baton flows smoothly from start to end,” he said.
“We have done numerous tests yesterday (Tuesday) and today (Wednesday) and I am comfortable with how each athlete has reacted,”
“In addition, we plan to travel to China early to give ourselves an opportunity to try our (baton) handover on the race venue. This will ensure every one of our athletes understand where to be, what to do and at what time during their respective races.”
Mweresa, a veteran of three World Relays, is honoured to guide a young, talented team to China, in a continent where Kenya has performed exemplary over the years.
“This is my fourth World Relays and I am privileged to captain the team,” he said earlier. “Expectations are high since we have a very young team.
Tanui expects trouble-free period in training as they seek to exorcise their also-rans’ performance from Bahamas 2024.
“The training is going on well and we are optimistic of having a smooth process as we seek to have the athletes in the best shape possible for the World Relays. We thank Athletics Kenya and the government, through the Ministry of Sports for their support,” said Tanui.
