Athletics coaches to set up free gymnasium in Iten

Iten-based coaches, accompanied by athletes during an award ceremony in Kamariny Stadium on Monday. The tacticians will use the cash to purchase equipment for a gym. [Stephen Rutto, Standard]

Coaches based in one of the world’s most preferred training destinations are setting up a gym that would help budding athletes to get free training facilities.

The coaches had taken part in a contest and won money as reward for producing world beaters.

They said despite Iten being the mecca of athletics training, attracting local and foreign stars, it had no free gym for upcoming talents.

Athletics coach, Elkanah Ruto had entered a SportPesa Tujiamini contest and applied on behalf of 52 other coaches. His side emerged the gold winners and decided to use the reward to set up a gym for the athletes they train.

“It is the first time coaches are being rewarded and we have decided to use the money to buy equipment for a gym to improve the quality of our training. It is the first step in rewarding athletes’ support personnel,” Ruto said during the award ceremony at Kamariny Stadium on Monday.

The coach said the Iten-based tacticians were envisioning a gym that would host 400 athletes in one training session.

“We are now engaging Elgeyo Marakwet County for a public space and we will provide the equipment through the SportPesa Jiamini reward,” he said.

Ruto said he was confident the proposed gym would improve performance, adding that it will enhance loading and other sessions.

“We have two private gyms but upcoming athletes can’t afford to pay subscription fees because they are expensive and many athletes come from humble backgrounds. The few who can afford gym services are in big sports management. The majority, who are over 4,000 athletes, can’t access the gyms,” said Ruto.

Talents preparing for forthcoming races including the Nairobi City Marathon scheduled for next month said access to gym training remains a big hurdle in Iten.

“We have improvised our own gyms at training camps. Some of us have improvised some stones for weightlifting because accessing a modern gym is an expensive affair,” Ezekiel Sirma, an athlete preparing for the 2024 Nairobi City Marathon said.

Sirma said many upcoming athletes were struggling with basics such as food and running gears. He said free training facilities would ease the situation.

Road racer Rael Mitheka said gym training was crucial in preparation for races, and that athletes would go for as long as a year without access to modern facilities.

“Gym should be part of our training programmes but are not affordable. It is in a gym that you build strong muscles ahead of competitions. We hope the free gym will help,” said Mitheka.

Deborah Chepkirui said Ruto had applied for the funding on behalf of 52 other coaches from Iten.

They have a team of over 4,000 athletes training in Iten and they have chosen to equip a gym with the winnings.