Kenyan athletes Phanuel Kipkosgei and Kelvin Koech entered the men’s 800m heats at the World Under 20 Athletics Championships in Peru with high hopes.
While Koech secured a spot in the semifinals with a solid performance, Kipkosgei’s journey ended after a valiant but ultimately unsuccessful effort.
Kipkosgei, competing in the first heat, finished fourth with a time of 1:50.20, narrowly missing the third-place spot by 0.04 seconds. Despite his strong showing, he did not advance to the semifinals. The heat was won by Great Britain’s Henry Jonas in 1:49.89, with John O’Reilly of Canada and Morocco’s Ayoub Elfakhar securing the other two automatic qualifying spots.
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On the other hand, Koech performed admirably in Heat Two, finishing second with a time of 1:49.28, just 0.07 seconds behind Tunisia’s Mohamed Karim Amri. Amri led the heat with a personal best of 1:49.21, and Koech’s strategic run ensured his place in the next round. Daniel Watcke from the USA took third place with a time of 1:49.86, claiming the final automatic qualifying position.
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Other competitors in the second heat included South Africa’s Matthew Burnett, who finished just outside the top three, and Carlos Eduardo Lara from Brazil, among others, rounding out the field.
