Kenya’s Amos Serem won the first Diamond League title of his career on Friday night at the 2024 finals held in Brussels, Belgium.
Serem, who has struggled this season, overcame a star-studded field that had the likes of compatriot Abraham Kibiwot and the reigning Olympic Games champion Soufiane El Bakkali to bag the prestigious title.
He took matters into his hands with 400m to go and never allowed El Bakkali to catch up with him as he won the race in 8:06.90, handing Bakkali his first loss in the discipline since September 2021.
After crossing the finishing line, the 22-year-old broke into a dance to celebrate the incredible achievement in his budding career.
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The dance brought back the memories of Kenya’s steeplechase legend Ezekiel Kemboi, who used to entertain fans in a similar manner after winning races.
El Bakkali, who was the pre-race favorite, settled for second place in 8:08.60 ahead of Tunisia’s Mohamed Amin Jhinaoui, who clocked 8:09.68.
Kibiwott did not have enough gas in the last stages of the race and in the process came in a distant fourth in 8:10.51.
Another Kenyan representative in Wilberforce Kones failed to finish.
Amos Serem celebrates
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Serem is expected to return home with a cash reward of $30,000 (approximately Ksh 3,864,000 based on the current exchange rate) and a Diamond League Trophy.
Furthermore, if he meets certain criteria, he will be awarded a wild card for next year’s World Athletics Championships.
Meanwhile, El Bakkali will pocket $12,000 (approximately Ksh1, 548,000) while $7,000 (approximately Ksh 903,000) will go to Jhinaoui.
On the other hand, Kibiwott is set to earn $4000 (approximately Ksh 561,000) with the fifth, sixth, seventh and eighth place finishers also expected to get monetary awards.
The two-day event is scheduled to end on Saturday, where a couple of crunch races will be on offer.
Faith Kipyegon, Faith Cherotich and Beatrice Chebet are some of the star Kenyan runners that will compete tomorrow.
ALSO READ: SportPesa launch revolutionary Tujiamini Initiative to nurture talent
Tujiamini is an initiative that seeks to provide a platform, including up to 30M shillings in funding, for individual, team sports and various talent, in a year-long campaign that will go around the country in a move aimed at evoking the sense of pride in Kenya’s sports and talent ecosystem.
Applicants are urged to submit their applications through www.tujiamini.co.ke