NAIROBI, Kenya, October 26 – World Under 20 5000m champion Andrew Alamisi has attributed his victory in the second leg of the Athletics Kenya (AK) Cross Country Series in Kapsokwony to the support of his family members.
Alamisi says seeing his family members among the crowd of supporters at the Kapsokwony Boys’ Secondary School spurred him to victory in the junior men’s 8km on Saturday.
“They were there in the crowd and when I saw them, I told myself to run my best and make them proud. It also helps that I come from around here and hence, I am used to the weather,” the youngster said.
Alamisi clocked 23:57.33 to clinch first place, ahead of Cornelius Kipkosgei (23:57.54) and Edwin Elkana (24:09.00), who finished second and third respectively.
The Mt Elgon native is readying himself for a race in Italy and said Saturday’s win was the perfect preparation for this next mission.
“After competing at the World Under 20 in Peru, my manager was organising a race for me in Italy. However, first, I needed to come and compete here and test myself. This is important to ensure I am in great condition to go and compete in Italy,” he said.
The victory notwithstanding, Alamisi admits he is not at his best yet.
“I need to go back to training and work on my speed as well as endurance. My body is in great condition but I feel that those aspects of my race are still weak,” he said.
The youngster will be competing in Italy on November 17.