More than 1,000 athletes are expected to take part in the fourth edition of Betika Uasin Gishu Half Marathon scheduled Sunday August 9th in Eldoret.
10,000m men’s defending champion Robert Kiprop leads a strong field in pursuit of another memorable victory.
Kiprop returns to defend the title he won last year after producing a commanding performance to clock 1:00:56 to finish ahead of Peter Tuitoek and Titus Kiprotich, who stopped the clock at 1:00:58 and 1:01:05.
The 2019 African Games 5,000m champion heads into this year’s race in impressive form, having recently set a half-marathon Personal Best of 59:51 during the Berlin Half Marathon in March.
The women’s race is also expected to deliver exciting competition with anew winner set to be crowned in the absence of defending champion Gladys Chepkurui, who claimed victory in 1:08:56 last year to edge out Vivian Cherotich and Christine Ndambi who finished second and third after clocking 1:10:02 and 1:10:27, respectively.
Speaking ahead of the race, Betika Head of Brand, Eric Mwiti, said the company was proud to once again bring the event to Kenya’s athletics capital.
“We are delighted to return to Eldoret for the fourth edition of the Betika Uasin Gishu Half Marathon. There is no better place to stage a race of this calibre than Kenya’s home of champions, where running is part of the region’s identity and heritage. Every year, the event continues to grow, attracting stronger fields and greater participation, which speaks to its importance on the local athletics calendar. We are looking forward to another exciting day of competition and wish all the athletes the very best as they compete for top honours,” Mwiti said.
The race will feature men’s and women’s 21-kilometre contests as well as the Masters category for athletes aged 55 years and above.
Winners of the men’s and women’s 21-kilometre races will each receive Ksh. 300,000, while the runners-up will pocket Ksh.200,000 and third-place finishers Ksh.100,000. Athletes finishing fourth, fifth and sixth will earn Ksh. 50,000, Ksh. 40,000 and Ksh. 30,000 respectively, with those placing seventh to tenth each taking home Ksh. 20,000
