Its been a great week for Kenya at the World Athletics Championships in Beijing. In under a week, we have won 11 medals. Six of them being gold medals. To put it simply, we have won two gold medals everyday of the championships. Now who does that, if not the hardworking Kenyan athletes?
Its not that we did not expect to win. Our sportsmen and women have made it a tradition to always scoop as many medals as possible. In fact, one would be forgiven to say that there is no news in our success. The real news would be in us not getting the medals! Its the man bite dog kind of thinking. But I didn't go to journalism school so I really don't get it!
Julius Yego, the Youtube Man, won us our first gold javelin medal in a field event. Nicholas Bett, the man who shocked all of us with his sprint, scooped our first ever gold in the 400m hurdles. Bolt beware, we are coming for you! (And congratulations, it wasn't an easy win!) Vivian Cheruiyot, the Pocket Rocket, made a welcome comeback after a two-year maternity leave by winning the 10,000m gold. David Rudisha, King David, true to his name reclaimed his name and won the 800m gold. Ezekiel Kemboi, the team captain, did not only lead a clean sweep at the 3000 steeplechase and affirming our rightful dominance of this dear event but also had a new dance, or something like that! Hyvin Kiyeng Jepkemoi ran away with our sixth gold at the women's 3000m steeplechase.
This success has earned us a few naysayers. Hardly do you read a story from so-called reputable international media houses without lacing our success with doping issues. I would rather we just competed on the tracks than casting doubt on our successes.
What we are, and can somebody tell CNN this, is a hotbed of gold medals! And nothing is more Kenyan, nothing unites us more, nothing gives us so much pride, than our men and women standing on podiums in international events, donning our colours and gold medals while our national anthem plays!
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