Athletics in Elgeyo Marakwet Kamariny: A Mecca of Distance Running Kamariny Stadium is a sporting arena well known to long-distance running fans in Kenya, and internationally by athletics fans. It has hosted countless superstars, as well as generations of gold medal winners. If, instead of heading north from the High Altitude Training Camp, to Iten, you head south, towards Kamariny, you'll find yourself in 2 km via Iten-Kapkoi Road at the famed Kamariny Stadium. It is situated 4 km from Iten town and 36 km from Eldoret town. Since its construction in the 1950s, inaugurated by H.R.H Queen Elizabeth II in 1958 as a public cinder track, Kamariny Stadium has always had a ‘dirt track’, built from murram, a rusty-red, gravelly, laterite material commonly used around the county to construct ‘feeder roads’: smaller village roads that feed into larger paved roads. Iten and Kamariny are located in the highlands, at an altitude of roughly 2,400 metres above sea level. Following the 1968 Olympic Games in Mexico, athletes, coaches, and sports scientists become increasingly aware that the ‘thin air’ characteristic of high altitudes had a significant effect on long-distance running. And thus begun Kamariny's lengthy eminence in engendering distance running. Since and now, this tried and tested event stadium, open to both elite athletes and the public, has earned its title as a legit stamping ground for Kenya's long-distance running. It is a training ground for many of Kenya's pedigree champions, who make easy work of some of the most brutal world athletic races. The surface of the Kamariny track could hardly be differentiated from the local, common surrounding rural roads, which many say is part of the blueprint for success. So trusted is this rough tuff that when Kenyan coaches take groups of runners for long-distance trainings on trails around Iten and Kamariny they staunchly avoid tarmacked roads, because of their rigidity, and always guide athletes to murram feeder roads between surrounding farms and households. Among the athletes who've upskilled here include: David Rudisha, Abel Kirui, Wilson Kipsang, Eliud Kipchoge and U.K.'s Mohamed "Mo" Farah . And, akin to the comradely of soldiers, world champions, novice runners and guests all rub shoulders here. The world champions also welcome and train with many travellers to Kamariny Stadium. In 2017, the Government, under Vision 2030 agenda, arrived in Kamariny with a ground-breaking project, onboarding a construction company to build a large state-of-the-art stadium. By following aesthetic norms of similar stadiums from other parts of the world, the promised Kamariny stadium marked the area and its citizens as deserving of inclusion into global imageries of modernity and progress. The new Kamariny stadium was designed to replace the antique 1950s colonial-era track, which, while arguably in rack and ruin, served generations of Kenyan long-distance runners and aspiring athletes. The remake promised to turn the old athletics track into an imposing modern stadium that would attract international visitors and global capital to the rural area. While the proponents were all in on the makeover, arguing there’s nothing better than sitting in a space with tens of thousands cheering on their favorite athletes, the opposers had different opinions. This is what Kemboi, a former huddles runner, had to say about the planned Kamariny stadium: "Rudisha was training there. My training mate … We did 90 percent of all our workouts here in Kamariny … It's a famous track … They wants to build so that every county has a Tartan track. But if it was me, they should have left Kamariny. They could have built somewhere else, maybe inside Iten [town]. Leave Kamariny the way it is, because Kamariny was wonderful for us". Before the renovations started in 2017, the stadium had a murram surface and according to athletes it was the best place to train. This is one of the facilities which the government had earmarked for renovation over six years ago, but to date, you are welcomed by a broken gate, a heap of soil and some weeds filled in the pitch. In September 2020, the co-ordination committee suspended the works after the contractor failed to meet the set date agreed on with Sports Kenya. Kenya is now well-known internationally as one of the great sporting nations in Africa – partly because of the dominance of long-distance runners from this region of Kenya. While the humble locals hardly blow their trumpets about the success of their sons and daughters, Kenya, at large, can’t help but be rigorously full of itself, and also because, yes, distance running is the great sporting event. Kamariny Stadium is especially fun to visit when qualifiers for national and international events are ongoing, when the track is still humming, you can watch events in progress, see gold medalists in the making. But such is the fever around sports in Kenya, you can often catch amateur and novice training here on every other given day, still entertaining and ethereal that epitomises the national sport. The location is as picturesque as the methodical, extremely hard work, mingled with focused passion and a tradition of success, in order to achieve something. It give one a happy feeling, very strange and impossible to explain. Long-distance running in Kenya has gained an international standing, thanks to the country's exceptional success in distance running events at the Olympics, World Championships, and other prestigious competitions. The success is a combination of natural talent, rigorous training regimes, cultural factors, high-altitude advantages, growing infrastructure, and the blessings from all Kenyans. A Guide to Athletics in Kenya Brief Overview of Athletics in Kenya Brief History of Long Distance Running in Kenya Kenya at the Olympics – Overview and Medal Winners : 800m, 3,000m Olympic Steeplechase, 5,000m, 10,000m, Marathon Places of Interest : Bungoma County - Chemoge High Altitude Training Camp, Elgeyo Marakwet County - High Altitude Training Camp , Kamariny Stadium , St. Patrick's High School , Uasin Gishu County - Kipchoge Keino Stadium Touring Elgeyo Marakwet County in Kenya offers a mix of stunning landscapes, cultural experiences, and outdoor adventures. Renowned for its rugged terrain and picturesque landscapes, it is also home to globally-famous long distance running exports. Hiking enthusiasts can explore trails such as the famous Kerio Valley Escarpment or venture into the Cherangani Hills for more challenging hikes. You Are Here: Kamariny Stadium Where to Next? Explore Destinations Nearby Kamariny Stadium A Guide to Elgeyo Marakwet County A Summa Digest of Elgeyo Marakwet About Elgeyo Marakwet Way Back When 44 Destinations in E. Marakwet County , arranged as one would visit these - west, south then north - with aid of narratives, images, strip maps and distance chart: Home of Champions Art Center, Keiyo Gardens, High Altitude Training Camp , Kamariny Stadium , St. Patrick's High School , Bugar Forest , Iten Viewpoint , Lelin Campsite , Kerio View Hotel , Active Edge , Rimoi National Reserve , Kapkurmoi Cultural & Conservation, Kessup Falls , Kessup Forest , Kilima Resort , Tambach Museum , Kolol Viewpoint , Torok Falls , Biretwo Museum , Kerio River Lodge , Chebloch Gorge , Samich Resort , Kenya Fluorspar Company , Sego Safari Resort , Melwa Gorge , Kerio Valley , Elgeyo (Kerio) Escarpment , Lake Kamnarok National Reserve , Kureswo Hot Springs , Metkei Ridge , Chemonde Forest, Chebirara Falls, Mela Cave , Cherangani Hills , Teren River Bridge , Arror Dam , Chebara Dam , Embobut Forest , Wewo Catholic Church , The Foothills (Kipkunurr & Koisungur) , Kipteberr Hill , Kiplagoch Caves , Ancient Marakwet Furrows Know More About E. Marakwet County: Its Geography, Land-Use, Highlights, Population, Roads - including strip maps, Airports, Climate & National Monuments What's The Air Like In Elgeyo M? With a wide range in altitude, from 3350 metres asl., on the Cherangani Hills to around 1000 metres asl., in the Kerio Valley. the temperature varies with altitude, between 18 o C and 26 o C average maximum. What's The Lay Of The Land in C.28? Elegyo Marakwet can be split into three agro-zones: A high altitude region of forest and moorland; The Cherangani mountains; And the lower set Kerio Escarpment and Valley. Know More About Elgeyo Marakwet…

Source Images

  • https://thisiskenyahome.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/spatial-location-of-hatc-and-kamariny-stadium-in-elgeyo-marakwet.jpg
  • https://thisiskenyahome.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/kamariny-stadium-2.jpg
  • https://thisiskenyahome.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/kamariny-stadium-3.jpg
  • https://thisiskenyahome.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/kamariny-stadium.jpg
  • https://thisiskenyahome.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/kamariny-stadium-1.jpg
  • https://thisiskenyahome.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/kamariny-stadium-4.jpg
  • https://abirikenya.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/guide-to-atheletics-in-kenya.jpg?w=1024
  • https://abirikenya.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/links-2-9.png
  • https://abirikenya.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/e.-marakwet-county-media-updated.jpg?w=1024
  • https://abirikenya.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/links-2-8.png
  • https://thisiskenyahome.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/pexels-photo-2952663.jpeg
  • https://thisiskenyahome.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/elgeyo-marakwet-county-distance-chart-3-1.png?w=800
  • https://thisiskenyahome.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/pexels-photo-5823169.jpeg