Fast sprints in store as Continental Tour action returns to Nairobi

Olympic rematches and world-class head-to-heads highlight the Kip Keino Classic, this season’s third World Athletics Continental Tour Gold meeting, in Nairobi on Saturday (7).

All eyes will be on some of the world’s best sprinters as they seek to take advantage of the high altitude at the Moi International Sports Centre in Kasarani, Kenya.

The gold and silver medallists from the Tokyo Olympic Games will be meeting again in the men’s 100m, as Italy’s Marcell Jacobs takes on USA’s Fred Kerley.

Jacobs has the faster personal best of 9.80, set when winning the Olympic title, compared to Kerley’s 9.84 in that Olympic final. Kerley, however, knows the stadium well as it is where he ran his 200m PB of 19.76 last year.

“It’s wonderful to be back where I ended my season last year,” said Kerley after his arrival in Nairobi. 

It won’t be a two-horse race, though, with Kenya’s Ferdinand Omanyala, who has the fastest PB of 9.77, also lining up, along with USA’s Olympic 200m silver medallist Kenny Bednarek.

The women’s 100m is also expected to thrill the spectators, with Jamaica’s Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce racing Namibia’s Christine Mboma.

Fraser-Pryce, 35, has already established herself as a sprinting legend, with her personal best of 10.60 making her the third-fastest women’s 100m runner in history. She has also won three Olympic sprint gold medals to go with her 10 world titles.

Mboma, on the other hand, is seen as a rising star to watch out for. The Olympic silver medallist and world U20 champion in the 200m has been entered in both the 100m and 200m in Nairobi and will be facing Fraser-Pryce in the first shorter race.

The men’s hammer throw will be another big event to watch, with two Tokyo Olympic medallists who happen to be from the same country set to continue their rivalry.

Poland’s Wojciech Nowicki, 33, is the reigning Olympic champion, while Pawel Fajdek, 32, is the world champion. The two have been in the limelight since 2008, with Fajdek leading their head-to-head record 86 to 21.

The women’s hammer throw, meanwhile, has three-time Olympic champion and world record-holder Anita Wlodarczyk, also from Poland, ready to showcase her great talent in Nairobi.

The men’s and women’s 3000m steeplechase events will demand great interest, with the world eager to see if Kenyan athletes can reclaim their dominance after defeats at the Tokyo Olympics by Morocco’s Soufiane El Bakkali and Uganda’s Peruth Chemutai.

Chemutai will face strong competition in the women’s event from the 2016 African champion Norah Jeruto, who recently changed her citizenship to represent Kazakhstan, plus Kenya’s two-time world U20 gold medallist Celliphine Chespol and reigning world U20 champion Jackline Chepkoech.

In the absence of El Bakkali, the men’s race is expected to be a Kenyan affair. The world U20 champion Amos Serem will measure himself against some of the top senior runners in the event, including world and Olympic gold medallist Conseslus Kipruto, Tokyo Olympic bronze medallist Benjamin Kigen and Commonwealth Games silver medallist Abraham Kibiwot.

In the women's 800m, Uganda's world champion Halimah Nakaayi will be looking to start her season with a win - her last race being the world indoor final in Belgrade, where she claimed bronze. She goes up against Kenya’s Mary Moraa and Naomi Korir, Noelie Yarigo of Benin and Ethiopian champion Worknesh Mesele.

The men’s 800m will see Kenya's world U20 champion Emmanuel Wanyonyi renew his rivalry with his compatriot Noah Kibet, who claimed bronze at the global U20 event in Nairobi and then claimed world indoor silver in Belgrade. 

Other interesting clashes include Abel Kipsang against Kumari Taki in the men's 1500m, while Daniel Mataiko will take on Jacob Krop in the 5000m.

The women’s 1500m has a deep domestic field, led by Winny Chebet and Purity Chepkirui. Winfred Yavi, Bahrain's 3000m steeplechase specialist, will also be on the start line.

Justin Lagat for World Athletics