Kenya rules out wild card for team to World Relay

Kenya will not grant any wild cards to athletes ahead of the World Relay Championships in Nassau, Bahamas May 2-3, athletics officials said Thursday.

Athletics Kenya (AK) vice-president David Okeyo said merit and form of athletes will be the yardstick for the selection, reports Xinhua.

"I know we had a world record in the 4x1,500m relays but it will not grant the team the automatic slot for the selection to the team," Okeyo told journalists.

"It will be about the fitness of athletes on the day we select the team and no past records will be important. We want to pick the best we have and that can only be decided on the track," he added.

With qualification for the Rio Olympics and the World Championships in Beijing on target, Kenya will not gamble with its team selection as it plans another sweep at the relay championships.

Kenyan quartet of Mercy Cherono, Faith Kipyegon, Irene Jelagat and Hellen Obiri went into the history books when they set a new world mark of 16 minutes and 33.58 seconds up from the previous mark of 17:05.72 in the 2014 event.

However, Okeyo said the four, just like any other athletes eyeing to compete in Bahamas, will have to prove their worth during the country' s national trials in April.

"Talent in middle and long distance is not a matter of trial and error. Kenya is awash with talent and we need to be fair to give all the athletes who have qualified an equal chance to compete and win a ticket to the world relays," he said.

However, Kenya will strive to have a team in the 4x200m and the 4x100m. Last year's Kenya captain Mark said Kenya's hopes of qualifying to the Beijing World Championships during the World Relays in Bahamas remained a long shot.

"Kenya's chances of winning gold in Bahamas are remote in the 4x400m relays. But we are not taking our foot off the pedal because, in relay, anything is possible. The most importantly will be running fast time so as to qualify for the World Championships in Beijing in 2015," Mutai told Xinhua.

"It is that simple, our aim is to qualify for the Rio 2016 Olympics and the World Championships in China."

Other categories that Kenya will participate in Bahamas include the newly introduced 4x200m, 4x800m men and 4x1500m for both men and women.