Three times World 1500m champion, Asbel Kiprop has quit his favourite race, the 1,500m following his four year return from the doping ban.
Speaking at the Kipchoge Keino stadium in Eldoret during his first track training after four years, Kiprop, without naming his next move, said it has been a while competing in the 1,500m and it is time to move.
He said that Kenya will be safe in the hands of Elijah Manangoi and Timothy Cheruiyot among other junior athletes who have proved their worth on track.
“I want to say that Kenya is safe in the hands of Manangoi, and Cheruoyot in 1,500m. Kenya is in safe hands at the moment but I don’t want to say much about myself because I am thinking of the next race after doing enough in the 1,500m. Am now trying to gauge myself in 800m race which I am going to compete in,” said Kiprop.
The former Olympic 1500m champion warned that in the 1,500m, there is much development as far as the championships are concerned.
“I have seen that gradual change from junior to senior level and looking back at the Tokyo Olympics, among the seniors, there was only Cheruiyot but we have seen young stars emerge,” he said.
During his first training since 2018, he said he felt a different experience, which was a challenge compared to what he had been doing before.
“It has been a frustrating four years of ban and the allegations were not true and I had to wait for four years to elapse. I never felt comfortable training alone but I had got used to it and today being the first time to train with friends, it’s quite different because I do train alone in the bushes out there,” he said.
He said that training with colleagues was a relief for his life, appreciating his friends who have welcomed him.
