The year that is just a few days way from its conclusion was a phenomenal season for Kenyan athletes in major international championships despite equally having its fair share of challenges as well.
The first stop for Kenyans in 2024 was the World Athletics Indoor championships in Glasgow,Scotland from 1st to 3rd March ,Beatrice Chepkoech being the only medalist bagging bronze in the 3,000m.
Ferdinand Omanyala missed in the podium in 60m finishing 4th, similar result replicated in the 4x400m men relay team Kenya composed of Zablon Ekwam,Boniface Mweresa,Kevin Tauta and Wiseman Were.
Vivian Chebet also came close in 800m women finishing 4th.
On 30th March Beatrice Chebet led Kenyans to a clean podium finish in 10KM race at the 45th World Cross Country championships in Belgrade Serbia.
Chebet also retained her 2023 global title.
Another Kenyan Samuel Kibathi won gold medal in the 8km u 20 race while his compatriot Mathew Kipruto took home bronze as Benson Kiplangat bagged bronze in 10km senior men event.
Reynold Cheruiyot,Virginia Nyambura,Daniel Munguti and Purity Chepkirui added another gold in the mixed cross country relay.
5th Kip Kip Keino Classic
Kenya also staged the 5th Kip Keino Classic continental tour at the Nyayo Stadium on 20th April with Abraham Kibiwot reclaiming the 3,000 msc title as home athletes also dominated the 800m, Mary Moraa and Emmanuel Wanyonyi winning gold medals for women and men while Mary Ekiru and Reynold Cheruiyot won the 1500m titles.
World Relays
Early May during the World Athletics Relays in Bahamas Kenya performed poorly with the men’s 4x100m men’s team anchored by Africa’s fastest man in 100m Ferdinand Omanyala finishing last in heat 4.
The 4x400m team also failed to make it to the final finishing 5th in heat 1 of round 1 while the women counterparts finished last in heat 3 of round 1.
It was an awful outing as the 4x400m mixed relay team could only manage a last position in heat 3 of round one.
At the 23 Africa Senior Athletics Championships between 21st and 26th June in Cameroon, Kenya finished 2nd in the medal table amassing 19 medals,5 golds,7 silvers and 7 bronze medals behind eventual winners South Africa.
Paris Olympics
Kenya posted good results at the 33rd Olympic games in Paris,France finishing 17th overall and 1st in Africa with a total of 11 medals: 4 gold,2 silver and 5 bronze medals all of which were from athletics.
Beatrice Chebet was the athlete of the championships as she bagged two gold medals in 5,000m and 10,000m becoming the 1st Kenyan to attain the feat.
Other gold medals were from Faith Kipyegon in 1,500m and Emmanuel Wanyonyi in 800 both ensuring Kenya retained the titles from the Tokyo 2020 edition with the latter also continuing Kenyans dominance over the race with a 5th gold in a row since 2008.
USA once more stamped authority in athletics collecting 34 medals,with 14 gold,11 silver and 9 bronze medals.
World Athletics Under 20 Championships
The last track and field championships of the year was the world athletics under 20 championships in Lima,Peru Kenya finishing in 5th place with 3 gold,3 silver and a bronze.
Andrew Kiptoo Alamisi won gold in 5,000m, with Edmund Serem and Sarah Moraa adding a gold each in 3,000ms and 800m respectively.
Kenyans did exceptionally well in road running across different cities in the World in 2024.
Road Running
In road running Kenya’s Agnes Ngetich lowered the women’s world 10km record setting a new record of 28:46 in Valencia in January, improving Ethiopia Yalemzerf Yehualaw’s 2022 record by 28 seconds becoming the first woman to run 10km in under 29 minutes.
She also set a new World record in the 5km race in the same race of Valencia clocking 14:13 minutes.
Ten Months later Ngetich posted a 2nd fastest time at the Valencia half marathon 1:03:04 before he 2019 world Champion Ruth Chepng’etich smashing the women’s marathon world record stopping the clock at 2 hours 9 minutes and 56 seconds at the Chicago marathon in October becoming the 1st woman to finish the 42km race under 2 hours 10 minutes.
Hellen Obiri won the Boston Marathon in 2 hours 22 :37 minutes while Peres Jepchirchir set the women only World Record at the London Marathon in 1:16:16.
Ruth Chepng’etich triumphed at the Chicago Marathon with a mixed men and women world record before Sheila Chepkirui summed Kenyans superb performance in her debut marathon with a 2:24:35 at the New York city marathon.
Benson Kipruto won the Tokyo marathon in 2:02:16 before Alexander Mutiso Munyao emerged the winner at the London marathon in 2:04:01.
Brimin Kipkorir won the Sydney Marathon while John Korir bagged the Chicago marathon in a time of 2:02:44 before Sabastian Kimaru Sawe concluded the year in style for Kenyan men by winning the Valencia Marathon.
Track World Records
On May 25th, Beatrice Chebet, at the 2024 Prefontaine Classic, obliterated Ethiopia’s Letesenbet Gidey’s 10,000 meters world record of 29:01.03, running a time of 28:54.14 to become the first woman to break the 29-minute barrier.
In July Tripple Olympic Champion Faith Kipyegon shuttered her own 1,500m World Record with a new World record of 3 minutes 49 .04 seconds .
On the flip side, Kenya failed to recapture the 3,000 m men’s title at the Olympics, with Soufiane El Bakkali of Morocco successfully defending his title while women also failed to scoop gold in the same race.
The country also lost several athletes, both retired and active, the major shock being the death of the men’s marathon world record holder, Kelvin Kiptum, through a tragic road accident.
Kiptum left behind two children, his seven-year-old son Caleb and four-year-old daughter Precious.
