UAF vow to beat hiccups

Race against time. Workers prepare one of the four climbs for the World Cross Country Championships set to be hosted by Uganda in March. The local organising committee will test their readiness this Saturday at the nationals. Photo by JB SSENKUBUGE

What you need to know:

  • Athletics. The athletics federation will use Saturday’s National Cross Country Championships that will also act as the local qualifier for the world event as a test event.

KAMPALA.

A journalists’ tour of the course for the World Cross Country Championship yesterday largely went well.
It was near-perfect until Faustino Kiwa, the Uganda Athletics Federation (UAF) technical chairman, pointed out some inadequacies.

“We still have a challenge on the tarmac here. This tarmac was supposed to have grass on it and we are trying to figure out if it will be ready by Saturday,” Kiwa told the media gathering yesterday.

The area of concern is right in front of the spectators’ stand as Uganda prepare to host the global event on March 26.

UAF will use Saturday’s National Cross Country Championships that will also act as the local qualifier for the world event as a test event.

In fact, UBC TV, the broadcast rights holders, will screen the nationals as part of their ‘dry run’ and they too went through their camera angles during the journalists’ tour.

“We hope to cover the tarmac with grass and soil. We might have to do makeshift because we are still waiting for the DPC to protect the tarmac and put soil on it,” Kiwa added.

The army’s engineering brigade is handling the works on the course. When we visited, the climbs, the definitive task of any x-country event, were being worked upon.

“You have to deal with four climbs and one of them is…as you have seen down there, it’s very high. It’s going be 2m high,” Kiwa explained as workers did their chores.

There was a lot of wet soil being used to artificially build the climbs. Despite Kiwa being cautiously optimistic, the event director Aggrey Kagonyera was confident.

“We are about 80% ready,” Kagonyera said. Former world and Olympic champion Stephen Kiprotich is part of the 49-man list unveiled by UAF last October.

Uganda will field six teams with each constituted by six athletes. These include senior (men and women), junior (boys and girls) and relay (men and women.

TEAM UGANDA
SENIOR MEN: Joshua Cheptegei, Phillip Kipyeko, Abdallah Mande, Thomas Ayeko, Daniel Rotich, Moses Kurong, Timothy Toroitich, Phillip Kiplimo, Robert Chemonges, Stephen Kiza, S. Kiprotich

SENIOR WOMEN: Juliet Chekwel, Stella Chesang, Racheal Chebet, Nancy Cheptegei, Emily Chebet, Doreen Chemutai, Rebecca Cheptegei, Patricia Chekwemoi, Adero Nyakisi, Mercyline Chelangat
JUNIOR MEN: Mande Bushendich, Martin Masau, Abel Chebet, Anthony Ayeko, Victor Kiplagat, Boniface Sikowo, Jacob Kiplimo, Albert Chemutai, Matthew Chekrui, K. Kibet