• Ngii’s next stop is the World Relay Walk race in Turkey on April 21, where she will be chasing Olympic qualifying time.
• Meanwhile, Samuel Gathimba won silver in the men’s category and declared himself ready for the Paris Olympics.
It was all Paris Olympic talk after Kenya’s Emily Ngii secured Kenya’s first gold medal at the University of Ghana Stadium in Accra on Wednesday.
However, the results were timed at 19km after lap scorers miscalculated laps for the athletes, where five covered the full distance while five were 1km short.
Ngii topped the standings in 1:37:34, followed by Ethiopia’s Sintayehu Teshager (1:38:07) and Souad Azzi of Algeria (1:45:42). Kenya’s Silvia Cherono was fourth in 1:41:20.
Ngii’s next stop is the World Relay Walk race in Turkey on April 21, where she will be chasing Olympic qualifying time.
“I am just a minute outside the qualifying time. I have 1:30hrs and I require 1:29hrs to qualify for the Olympic Games,” she revealed.
Tough training in her Ngong Camp was key to her title defence.
“I could cope with the pace because weather conditions were the same as Ngong,” she said.
“I could go for a morning run and return mid-day when the sun was hot for the main training and it has worked.”
“I wouldn’t say the weather here affected me much because the conditions were favourable after it rained yesterday. I have not done any speed work here and the longest training I have had is 20 minutes and that worked too.”
Ngii used mind games to beat the Ethiopians.
“They didn’t know what I was planning and sometimes I could retreat in the race just to make them comfortable and re-appear time and again to announce my presence,” she said.
“This seemed to disorganise them a lot and in the process. I took advantage of the situation to attack once and for all.”
She has the endurance and will now work on speed.
Meanwhile, Samuel Gathimba won silver in the men’s category and immediately declared himself ready for the Paris Olympics.
Gathimba clocked 1:28:06 to finish second behind Ethiopia’s Misgana Wakuma (1:28:05). Algeria’s Ismail Benhammouda (1:31:12) took bronze with Dominic Ndigiti fourth position in 1:34:51. Ethiopia’s Melese Ayana completed the top five in 1:35:15.
Gathimba cried foul over the ‘dirty tactics’ applied by his Ethiopian rival. He would have retained the title had the Ethiopian not applied unsportsmanlike tactics.
“Wakuma was running and that is cheating,” said Gathimba.
However, he is happy with a ‘fairly won’ silver medal. “I am proud because I stuck to the rulebook,” he said while describing the course as ‘a killer.’
“I had to fight several things including the harsh weather conditions, the terrain and dirty tactics from my rivals to get a silver medal,” he noted
He can’t wait for the World Relays in Turkey. “I will go back home and prepare for the meeting,” he said.
Cherono said Ngii was crucial in her top four placing. “She has helped me and that's why I have performed well here,” she noted.
She will stick to training with her Defence Forces mentor as she prepares for the World Relays, a path to the Paris Olympic Games.
The two also acknowledged the support from coach David Kimutai, a former African champion over the distance.
Ndigiti said a lack of running shoes was behind his dismal showing.
“My shoes were worn out and I couldn’t quite keep my balance. I tried talking to the management about this but didn’t get a response. I decided to compete with whatever I had,” he noted.
He is happy with a fourth-place finish and will train hard for the Turkey event.
“They (athletes) are dedicated and I am not surprised with this performance,” said Kimutai.