•Abunda finished 10th at last year's Kip Keino Classic as the Polish duo took the top two places
•Abunda said the period of inactivity due to Covid-19 hampered his performances last year
•The KDF officer has already qualified for the Senior African Championships and is also targeting the Commonwealth Games and World Championship
National hammer throw champion Dominic Abunda is hopeful of competing against Olympic champion Wojciech Nowicki and bronze medalist Pawel Fajdeck at this year's Kip Keino Classic.
The national record holder came up against the Polish duo at last year's edition at Moi Stadium, Kasarani, scoring 57.19m in 10th. Fajdeck scored 78.33m to walk away with gold as Nowicki (77.99) finished second.
Abunda believes another encounter with the two is the perfect way to test himself as he prepares for upcoming international competitions.
"The Covid-19 period was a huge challenge for those in field events as we could not train together. As such when the Kip Keino Classic came around, I was not adequately prepared hence the poor performance. There was also a new technique I had adopted but I had not adjusted to it properly," Abunda said.
He added: "This time I am better prepared and have applied the lessons acquired from last year's edition. It is going to be a pleasure competing against the Polish champions once again because I know they'll push me to the limit."
Abunda, who will be representing the country at the Senior Africa Athletics Championships in Reduit, Mauritius in June, also has his sights on the World Championship in Oregon and Commonwealth Games in Birmingham.
"Now that I have made it to the African championship, my major focus is on the World Championship. I would also love to go to the Commonwealth and try to break my record like I did at the last edition in Gold Coast. I feel in a stronger position physically and mentally," he said.
At the Club Games in Australia, Abunda had thrown 61.38m to set a national record, which only stood for four months before he broke it again with a throw of 62.57m at the African Championships in Asaba, Nigeria.
He is confident the country can achieve great things in hammer throw if athletes are provided with the right resources to succeed.
"I have been working on my speed and power in training so I can improve on my throw. Things are much better now that corona restrictions have been lifted to allow us to train better. Obviously, the results of the work you put in training often take time before it materialises," Abunda said.
He added: "Kenyans struggle in field events. For example in the hammer throw, achieving a score of at least 60m is quite a challenge due to the lack of proper training facilities. There is also a lack of awareness on hammer throw to encourage as many people to take up the sport."