NAIROBI, Kenya, August 8, 2025 – Maureen Jepkoech is keen to dominate this year’s Betika Athletics Kenya (AK) Cross Country Series after missing out on qualification for the World Championships in Tokyo.
Jepkoech says she has recovered from the heartbreak of missing out on the global competition and is now focused on ruling the podium at the annual competition.
“I have been training hard and focusing on the series after missing out on the ticket to Tokyo. I am satisfied with my performance at Prefontaine Classic and I’ve made peace with the results. I now want to perform well at the Cross Country Series,” she said.
The 21-year-old was bidding for a ticket to the World Championships but came up short at last month’s Prefontaine Classic in Eugene, United States.
Chebor finished 15th in the women’s 5000m after clocking 14:50.68.
Nonetheless, she will be buoyed by her past performance in the cross country series in which she was one of the standout performers at last year’s edition.
The youngster clocked 36:22 to win the senior women’s 10km race at the first leg of the series in Machakos – at the Machakos Teachers’ Training College – in October last year.
She then repeated the trick a fortnight later at the Kapsokwony leg of the series, cutting the tape in 34:05 to win the senior women’s race.
Jepkoech also finished second at February’s National Cross Country Championships at the Eldoret Sports Club where she clocked 34:33 in the senior women’s race.
She will be among hundreds of athletes who will be battling for glory at Saturday’s race, which is the first of four legs of the annual competition.
This year’s event has been whittled down to four legs in alignment with next year’s World Cross Country Championships that is set for January 10 in Tallahassee, Florida.
This is unlike the recent editions of the global competition, which have been held in March or April – long after the conclusion of the cross country season in Kenya.
After Machakos, action heads to Kapsokwony (September 6) for the second leg before Ol Kalau and Kericho, respectively.
The national competition is set for October 25 at the Eldoret Sports Club.
