Edwin Kurgat confident of ending Kenya's 36-year wait for Olympics 5,000m title

Little-known Edwin Kurgat is inspired by his London Diamond League performance to win the 5,000m Olympics title that the country last claimed in 1988 Seoul Games.

Edwin Kurgat is now ready to stun the masses at the Paris Olympic Games and reclaim Kenya’s gold medal in the men’s 5000m following his London Diamond League Meeting third-place finish.

Kurgat, competing in the men’s 3000m, crossed the finish line third in 7:28.53 as Dominic Lobalu set a Swiss record, clocking a personal best time of 7:27.68 to win the race. Grant Fisher finished second in the hotly-contested race, clocking 7:27.99.

Kurgat admitted that the race is very vital as he heads to the Olympic Games. He disclosed that throughout the race, his body was feeling good and going under 7:30 is a sign of fireworks at the Olympic Games.

The last time Kenya won a gold medal at the Olympic Games in the men’s 5000m was at the 1988 Seoul Olympic Games courtesy of the late John Ngugi.

“Throughout the race I was feeling good, really composed. This was the race where I wanted to run good to get ready for the Olympics so I'm glad with how I ran,” Kurgat said.

“I'm feeling confident going in to Paris, running under 7:30 is a big achievement for me and now I'm just ready for what's to come. The crowd was amazing, they helped push me to get it finished,” he added.

The 28-year-old has been impressive this season, starting from his indoor campaign to the outdoor races. He opened his season with the 3000m and 5000m indoor races at the New Balance Indoor Grand Prix and Boston University John Thomas Terrier Classic respectively finishing second and first.

Kurgat finished fourth in the men’s 10,000m at the Prefontaine Classic, missing out on the Olympic team shortly but bounced back in the 5000m to finish third and automatically qualify for the event.

posted Monday July 22nd
by Abigael Wafula