Running News Daily

Sigowet Athletics Training Camp at Kiptere falls silent as virus bites

At this time of the year, Sigowet Athletics Training Camp at Kiptere Boys Secondary School, some 32 kilometers away from Kericho town, would be busy with budding athletes training hard.

But thanks to coronavirus, the training camp now looks like a ghost town.

The running track in the camp sandwiched between lush green tea farms is now overgrown with grass thanks to heavy rains pounding the region.

In Kalenjin dialect, Sigowet is a herbal tree which is medicinal, but its efficacy has failed to tame the deadly virus as athletes stay away. 

The camp has for years been a big attraction to scouts from Kenya Police Service, Kenya Defence Forces (KDF), Kenya Prisons among others lining up the running track to monitor future stars aged between 15 to 20 years as they push their nimble, little bodies to improve their fitness ahead of major races. 

Sigowet Training Camp was founded in 2001 by veteran athletics coach, Japheth Kemei and hosts between 60-100 athletes when it is in top gear.

“At this time of the year the camp hosts between 60 -100 youth and senior athletes training for various competitions, but since covid-19, it now resembles a ghost camp,” said Kemei, who is also chairperson of Athletics Kenya in Kericho County.

Before Sigowet Camp was launched, the only athletic training camp in South Rift Valley was based at Keringet in Nakuru County and was launched by the former Kenya Secondary Schools Sports Association chairman, the late Livingstone Kimutai Ng’etich.

In a span of 10 years, it has become a permanent breeding ground of youthful athletes who have represented Kenya in World Junior and Youth championships.

The first athlete to hit headlines from the camp was Emily Cherotich, who won the World Youth 800m championship title in Debrecen, Hungary in 2001 while running barefoot. 

Cherotich now turns out for Kenya Police team. 

Since Cherotich burst into the international scene, Sigowet camp has been producing runners in Under-18 and Under-20 competitions.

The camp has provided national youth teams with at least three or five athletes in every major international competition.And when they return back home with their glittering medals, they receive a rousing reception bringing the tea land to a standstill.

At last year’s Africa Under-20 and Under-18 Championships in Abidjan, Cote d’Ivoire, some of the athletes from the camp clinched gold medals including Fancy Cherono (2,000m Steeplechase), Collins Kipkorir (Triple Jump) and Peter Itanao Leshan (Javelin). Ronald Kipngetich (2,000m Steeplechase) and Kenneth Kirui (800m) won bronze medals.