Athletics Kenya and cross-country legend Paul Tergat have not taken the recent decision to make World Cross Country Championships a biennial event kindly.
Speaking at different forums yesterday, AK chairman Isaiah Kiplagat, and Tergat said athletes should not be victimised for being good at an event.
"Everybody has a duty to prepare their athletes well and I think it it’s not fair for our athletes," Kiplagat told FeverPitch.
International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) ruled at its recent Congress in Berlin that the event would be held after two years, while continental championships would be held at alternate years.
IAAF President, Lamine Diack, was quoted as saying Kenyan and Ethiopian dominance over the event had affected European television interest.
"They said cross-country has become a mockery of competition, others said there is no global competition there because the world is tired of watching Kenya and Ethiopia winning," Kiplagat told FeverPitch.
Tergat, who won men’s 12km event for five years, wondered why Africans have not complained when the Western world are dominating sprints, middle distance, basketball and football at (Fifa) World Cup finals.
"Sport unites the world regardless of athletes’ backgrounds. The fact that some athletes from some regions are dominating some sports is not their fault," he said.
"Cross country is one of the most spectacular sports where competitors face hills, mud, sand and other obstacles," said the former world marathon record holder.
Olympic sport
"This is the only sport that can be held in Africa without any problems. And we want it held at the Olympics, too," he said. "I think the timing and the wording of the reasons given are not in the best interest of the sport," he said.
Kiplagat said the continental cross-country championships may not go far because only a few countries would enter teams.
"In Africa, only Kenya, Ethiopia, Morocco and South Africa would enter teams," he said.
Kenya and Ethiopia have won the team titles at every World Cross-Country Championships since 1985. Individual titles have been shared by Kenya and Ethiopia since 1986, with Belgium’s Moroccan-born Mohammed Mourhit, the only exception in 2000 and 2001. Paul Tergat and John Ngugi won it 10 times between themselves.
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