Battle lines drawn as AK releases invite list for Agnes Tirop World Cross Country Tour

World Athletics' Cross Country Tour Gold meeting set for 12 February at Lobo Village in the outskirts of Eldoret town promises to be a tough test for participants with over 300 athletes set to compete. 

Athletics Kenya (AK) has released a list of the invited athletes across the six races, lost of them drawn from the national cross country event held last month at the same venue. 

In addition to the athletes invited from the national event, elite athlete have also been included in the list led by Geoffrey Kamworor and Letesenbet Gidey who headline the senior men's and women's fields respectively. AK has invited at least 25 foreign runners. 

Three-time world cross country champion, Kamworor who is also a three-time world half-marathon champion and a two-time New York Marathon winner will be racing on home soil for the first time since winning the 10,000m Olympics trials at Kasarani last year. 

The 29-year old will face stiff competition from the international athletes among them African 5000m bronze medalist Yemane Haileselassie of Eritrea, European Cross Country bronze medalist, Kenyan-born Aras Kaya of Turkey, 2017 World Mountain Running Championship silver medalist Joel Ayeko of Uganda, and Arab Championship 10,000m champion Albert Rop of Bahrain. 

Also in the race for a podium finish on home soil are Olympian Nicholas Kimeli, former World Under-2- 5000m champion Edward Zakayo, Kennedy Kiprop and Vincent Kiprop who finished second and third in the national championships as well as former World Under-20 10,000m champion Rhonex Kipruto and 5,000m athlete Michael Kibet.

The women's field has Gidey, who had a memorable 2021 after running world records in both the women’s half-marathon and 10,000m plus claimed Olympic 10,000m bronze in Tokyo.

The 23-year-old Ethiopian has won five gold medals at the World Cross Country Championships, four of which were at junior level, and is also a world 10,000m silver medallist as a favourite. 

She comes up against stiff competition in 2015 world cross country silver medallist Senbere Teferi, world 5000m silver medalist Margaret Chelimo and 2016 Africa Championship 3000m steeplechase Norah Jeruto among others. 

According to World Athletics, the course will feature hay, logs, hills and water sprays to help keep the athletes on their toes as they compete.

The event is the fifth race of the year on the World Athletics Cross Country Gold Tour, with races having already taken place in Spain, Great Britain and Italy.

The remaining races of the tour take place in Belgium on 20 February, Portugal on 27 February and Spain on 6 March.