Two-time Rotterdam Marathon champion Marius Kipserem wants local leaders to embrace sports and build training camps in a bid to help in nurturing young talent.
Kipserem, who won the Rotterdam Marathon titles in 2016 and 2019 with a course record of 2:04.11, said there are many sprouting athletes in North Rift, who lack support.
On a personal level, Kipserem, who is also the 2018 Abu Dhabi Marathon champion, said he is trying to nurture young talent in his home county of Nandi.
“I would like to tell our leaders to focus on training facilities to help the current generation of runners. These young athletes need to start from somewhere but that can't happen without facilities," he noted.
Kipserem said facilities and small races at the grassroots level will no doubt provide the platform for young athletes to thrive.
He added that most camps in the region are private and this makes it difficult for young people to kick-start their careers.
“We don’t have enough camps but we are discussing with some leaders to establish them. The small camps, if spread across the region, can serve as starting points for the young ones,” he said.
The 2016 Eindhoven Marathon runner-up added that he has taken the personal initiative to train some young athletes in a bid to help them realize their talents.
“I also want to advise young athletes to venture into track events before progressing to marathons. There should be a gradual growth,” he added.
This year, Kipserem said he was supposed to chase his third Rotterdam, Marathon title but was involved in an accident in February and hence failed to make the trip.
The man who paced Eliud Kipchoge at the Ineos 1:59 Challenge said he is back in training and was happy with his fitness levels ahead of either Chicago or London Marathon in October.
