Having groomed a pool of talented runners, athletics power Kenya will look to more glory in the Beijing Olympics in August.
The Kenyan Olympic Committee dished out about 30,000 U.S. dollars to help Athletics Kenya (AK) set up two behind-door training camps in late May, the largest medal drive towards the Olympics Games in history.
"The athletes will practise with each other and get familiar with teamwork especially in long-distance events, which I think would help Kenyan squad improve their group competitiveness," David Okeyo, secretary-general of AK, told Xinhua through telephone.
Early this month, 37 athletes came through a grueling trial event to make the Olympic squad.
In the men's 5,000m, Edwin Cheruiyot Soi beat the star-studded field to clinch a ticket to Beijing by clocking 13 minutes 29.5 seconds.
Soi clocked 7:48.81 in the 3,000m and 13:38.16 in the 5,000m to take two golds in the World Athletics Finals last year.
In the men's 1,500m, Commonwealth Games champion Augustine Choge has recovered from injury just in time and led the field in the trial while 800 meters runner Wilfred Bungei, who grabbed gold at the World Indoor Championships held in Moscow in 2006, also gained a ticket to Beijing.
The most high-profile competition is the men's 3,000m steeplechase in which Kenyan runners have reaped eight golds in the past Olympics.
The trial that featured the Sydney Olympics gold medalist Reuben Kosgei, All Africa Games champion Willy Komen and silver medalist Michael Kipyego was tight, but it was Athens Olympic steeplechase champion Ezekiel Kemboi who came first in the trial.
"I am a champion athlete. My focus is to win gold in Beijing," said Kemboi.
Among the elite women's athletes are 800 meters runner Pamela Jelimo and the Osaka world championships marathon winner Catherine Ndereba.
Jelimo clocked the best time in 11 years when he claimed the title in the Berlin Golden League meeting last month and won the national trial in 1:57.71.
"I am now ready to run for my country and confident that we shall win two medals," Jelimo told local media after the trial.
The first batch of the Kenyan squad will leave for Beijing on August 1 and the second group will depart two days later.
(Xinhua News Agency July 18, 2008)