Emmanuel Bor of Taita Taveta caused a major upset when he outclassed favourite Lameck Mwakio to win the 10km race during the Coast Region Cross Country Championships at Kwale Culture and Sports grounds on Saturday.
Bor led from the bell to win in 29 minutes 58.27 seconds in front of a large crowd that had Taita Taveta County Sports Executive Laban Mwashigadi.
Julius Kogo and Daniel Kiprotich, both from Taita Taveta, finished second and third in 29:58.91 and 29:59.69 respectively. Taita captain Mwakio came a distant fourth.
Bor said he was using the race as part of his preparations for the Milan Half Marathon to be held next month. "I'm happy to have won this race because it has given morale to do well in Milan in March," he said. "I was aiming for a better time but the hot-humid conditions made it difficult."
Pre-race favourite Mwakio said he was just aiming a place in the Coast team to the National Cross Country Championship to be held in Nairobi next weekend.
"I took the race as my preparations for the national event next weekend and the Kilimanjaro Half Marathon to be held on March 1. I congratulate my three teammates for finishing 1-2-3 and I hope we'll do better in Nairobi," he said.
In the senior women's 10km race, 14-year-old Rose Nthei from Taita Taveta - who is a Standard Eight pupil at Kidong'u Primary School - retained her crown in a time of 40:57.47. She first won the title last year at Kijiwetanga primary school grounds in Malindi.
Nthei said she was confident of victory having prepared adequately. "I started training early and I knew I'll win the race. I'm aiming to do better in the national event," she said.
Nthei was followed by her teammates Lucy Wanjiku who came second in 41:53.60 and Neema Mutinda who finished third in 47:36.01.
In the men's Under-20 8km race, Taita Taveta runners also dominated with Daniel Manthi winning in 24:07.45, Dannis Mutuku came second in 24:26.90 while Gibran Mwawana finishing third in 25:28.72.
Kilifi's Farida Shaban won the women's Under-20 6km race in 23:46.97 as her teammate Lucy Joseph finished second in a time of 24:05.79. Joseline Wakesho of Taita Taveta came third in 25:11.88.
The Coast team to feature in the National Cross Country Championship will be named on Sunday.
