Christie Njoki crosses the finish line to win the 10km race/HANDOUT
Njoki crossed the line in 30:04, holding off a late surge from Diana Wanza (30:32), while Phena Yego sealed third in 30:35 to complete the podium.
The 26-year-old was bullish about her chances before coming into Sunday's race.
"The race was good, I had prepared well for it and did not expect any challenges," Njoki said.
With the national trials looming, Njoki believes Sunday’s performance could tip the scales in her favour. "My focus now is the trials for the World Championships, I will be doing the 10,000m and hope to make the team to Tokyo."
"I have run the 10K today and so I see I can do well in the 10,000m at the trials," she noted.
In the men’s 10K showdown, Amos Kiprotich marked his debut in style, unleashing a powerful finishing kick to outduel Brian Kibor and Zakariah Kiriko in a thrilling sprint finish.
Kiprotich clocked 26:58 ahead of Kibor (26:59) and Kiriko (27:00). Making his maiden appearance, Kiprotich noted that the race was tactical.
"This was my first race here at the Nairobi City Marathon."
"The race was tactical; I tried to push up to the 6km mark, then the rest joined in so we could push to the finish line," Kiprotich said.
He, however, noted that he had full faith in his finishing kick.
"My finishing kick helped me because the others were pushing hard to the line," he added.
He will now go back to the drawing board before plotting for his next race.
"Now I am going back to the drawing board to see which other race I can participate in."
