Kiprotich sharpening his spear for Paris Olympic stab

Africa Games (2019) javelin silver medalist Alexander Kiprotich is back in training at Kasarani Stadium as he prepares for the busy 2023/24 season. 

Kiprotich who competed at the Commonwealth Games with a knee injury that prevented him from performing at his best says he is recovered enough to allow him embark on a strength and conditioning program on his own.

The Kenya Defence Forces (KDF) athlete is among eleven who, in May, received sponsorship from the National Olympic Committee of Kenya (NOC-K) ahead of the Paris 2024 Games.

"The official program begins next month but I have been in training for the last two weeks working on my fitness after a short break. I felt the need to be ready for the training I will undergo when NOC-K finalise plans for my training hence the early start," explained Kiprotich.

The scholarship holders are to receive a monthly subsidies until August 2024 to support their training and qualification costs.

The grants also include specialised coaching services, equipment, local and overseas training, regular medical assistance and monitoring and other items that would assist the athletes so that they can focus on their journey to prepare and qualify for the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.

"I am set to train in Finland, tentatively from next month and knowing how demanding such professional programmes can get, I need to be ready. 

I had an earlier opportunity but it came too close to the Commonwealth Games so we elected to wait for another chance that would give me an uninterrupted stay in Finland ahead of the busy 2023 and 2024 seasons," he further explained. 

He finished in fifth place with a 70.36 throw in Mauritius at the Africa Championships this year as compatriot Julius Yego won in 79.62. 

He improved his throw to 77.93 in Birmingham at the Commonwealth Games, despite the injury, for an eighth-place finish as Yego managed bronze with a massive season best throw of 85.70. 

Having not broken the 80m mark as his Personal Best throw stands at 78.84 m, Kiprotich is hopeful the specialised training will help him qualify for the 2023 World Athletics Championships in Budapest where the standard has been set to 85.20m. 

With qualification for Paris 2024 already open, making the distance for Budapest would also qualify Kiprotich for Paris which he says, is what he is eyeing as he looks forward to competing at the highest level.