The Independent Uganda: You get the Truth we Pay the Price
Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | Joshua Cheptegei will lead Team Uganda for top honors at the World Half Marathon Championships after setting the new 10,000-meter record in Valencia. A press statement issued by the Uganda Athletics Federation, says the team of eight will fly from Entebbe Airport around 11.50 pm on Wednesday aboard KLM.
The male team comprises Jacob Kiplimo, Abel Chebet and Moses Kibet. The female team comprises Juliet Chekwel, Doreen Chesang, Doreen Chemutai and Rachael Zena Chebet. Coaches Benjamin Njia and Addy Ruiter will be in charge of the team. The World Athletics Half Marathon Championships Gdynia 2020 was originally scheduled for March 29th 2020 in the northern Polish Baltic Coast City in Poland but was postponed to October 17, 2020, due to the Corona Virus outbreak.
Namayo Mawerere, the Publicity Secretary Uganda Athletics Federation, says Team Uganda has against all odds trained for the championships and is ready for the games in Poland. “We have trained them and they are ready. They have been training in Kapchorwa and that’s where we had our Camp for over a month,” Namayo told URN.
According to the statement, Joshua Cheptegei, Stephen Kissa and Coach Addy Ruiter will join the team from Europe where they pitched camp for training after the Valencia historic World Record triumph. In an interview with URN, Mawerere applauded the government and telecom giant MTN Uganda for facilitating the athletes to boost their morale to raise Uganda’s flag.
“Uganda government has really come on board. It is providing facilitation, which we really appreciate and MTN Uganda. This makes the team well-motivated,” Namayo said. Adding that “What is lacking is general public Support. We need even the private sector to come on board. We have got products, which are sellable that can market their companies.”. Uganda last participated at the 2018 World Half Marathon in Valencia, Spain with the men’s team finishing 5th and women 16th position overall. However, Namayo says they expect better results this time around.
********
URN
