•Ng’eno qualified for the Olympic Games during the last trials, where he posted 1:44.07, a personal and season’s best.
•In Accra, Ng’eno was convinced he had won the race only to realise that Cheminigwa had beaten him by a second.
Image: FILE
Alex Ng’eno has turned his focus to the Diamond League Series after winning a silver medal in the men’s 800m at the ongoing African Games.
On Wednesday, Ng’eno finished second in 1:45.73 behind compatriot Aaron Cheminigwa (1:45.72). Botswana’s Nkape Tumo clocked 1:46.04 to wrap up the podium.
Ng’eno will skip the Kip Keino Classic since he has committed to the Xiamen Diamond League on April 20, the same date as the Kenyan event.
“The two events are coinciding and since I had already confirmed participation in the Xiamen Diamond League in China, I have no choice but to skip Kip Keino,” he noted.
He will also compete at the Suzhou Diamond League, in China, on April 27. “This means once I leave, I will not return until I finish the two races.”
The two events are part of his build-up toward the Paris Olympic Games.
“I have already qualified for the Olympic Games and all I need is to ensure I prepare well and finish among the top three athletes during the trials,” he said.
Ng’eno qualified for the Olympic Games during the last trials, where he posted 1:44.07, a personal and season’s best.
“My target is to improve the time. I will seek to improve his personal best at the Stockholm Diamond League in Sweden (on July 2),” he noted.
In Accra, Ng’eno was convinced he had won the race only to realise that Cheminigwa had beaten him by a second.
“I learned later that I had settled for silver but since it was a Kenyan 1-2 finish, I am a happy man,” he noted.
They had planned to stay in the lead pack until the final 200m and their tactics worked perfectly.
“We knew setting the rhythm for the rest of the pack was bound to be counterproductive. I am happy everything went according to the script,” he said.
They were part of the team that won four gold medals and two silvers on Wednesday.
Meanwhile, Ng’eno will not run the Africa Senior Championships in Yaounde, Cameroon in June.
Despite enlisting for the various Diamond League meetings, his priority remains the Kenya Prisons Championships, Olympic trials and Paris Olympics.
Ng’eno predicts tough competition during the Olympic trials.
“One has to be ready to fight to make Team Kenya,” he said.
Ng’eno feels inspired by a two-month promotion training course at the Prisons Staff Training College.
“I am glad I am a corporal now. It inspires me a lot,” he noted.