After two races that comprised 15km of enthusiastic competition, Kenyan distance ace Godfrey Mbihia was the proverbial last man standing, having figuratively taken Guyana’s best distance athletes “to school”.
Godfrey ‘The Kenyan’ Mbihia crossing the finish line far ahead of the pack.
He crossed the finish line first on Sunday morning in the Independence 10K, and in little time was already ‘recharged and refuelled’ for what would be a much faster 5K event on Monday afternoon.
Cool, calm and collected on the starting line in the National Park on Monday, he got off to an average start, and stuck with the leading pack. Given that the distance to be covered was half of what had obtained on the previous day, participating athletes needed to go at a much faster pace in order to make the podium. The experienced 40-year-old Mbihia was aware of this, and ensured that he kept stride with the front runners.
Marlon Nicholson (red) has the lead ahead of ‘The Kenyan’, Godfrey Mbihia (blue)
By the time they hit the Carifesta Avenue stretch, the racers were divided into two groups, and it was clear who would be the first 10 athletes to cross the finish line. However, what was not clear were the final positions.
Mbihia found himself behind two youngsters, one of whom was Marlon Nicholson who had copped second place in Sunday’s race, having finished right behind the Kenyan; but despite their having the advantage of zest, stamina and youth, Mbihia showed those younger athletes that experience would always prevail, as he took over the lead at Thomas Lands.
Kissanna Glen (left) approaching the finish line
Heading into the National Park and nearing the finish line, Nicholson saw an opportunity to recapture the lead, but Mbihia had already put a distance of 60 metres between them, and the younger athlete could not close it. As such, for the second time in two days, the veteran all the way from Kenya was able to reign supreme.
Having now twice competed against Guyanese athletes, Mbihia had many positive things to say about them, while explaining how much he had enjoyed the race.
“Today’s race was so nice. Although I was feeling some tiredness…I was still confident. The race was very competitive; in fact, I loved it. They should take good care of these guys. You have good guys here, strong youths coming up,” Mbihia stated.
The up-and-coming Marlon Nicholson was very satisfied and contented with his second position. He noted that exhaustion and the common cold had almost prevented him from crossing the finish line, but he was happy that he had been able to persevere and make a good finish in such a tough field of competition.
“Well, I started off tired and my blood started getting hot. At one point I wanted to drop out (of) the race, but I had to make up my mind to run. The Kenyan is a smart runner, he’s more experienced than (I am), and I’m now developing. I give him the respect,” Nicholson told this publication.
Kissanna Glen was the first female to cross the 5K line. The Running Brave athlete finished minutes before some of her male counterparts, and took commanding strides across the finish line to take the female top honours.
“I performed good!” she said. “I started the race hard, and I knew if I continued with it I had to get a good end. A lot of things were going through my mind, like stop; but I just ignored that and I continued running, because I knew I was coming to the end,” Glen said.
The 5K race was hosted by the Guyana Committee of Services (GCOS) with sponsorship from Guybisco, Office of the President, Office of the Prime Minister, GTT, ANSA McAL, BK International, Brans Security, Busta Beverages, Cummings Electrical, and Kenneth Phillips.
In excess of $800,000 in prizes have been distributed to the successful athletes.
