Injury forces Sambu to skip African championships

The 2003 All Africa Games 400 metres gold medallist Ezra Sambu has pulled out of Kenya's squad for this year's African Athletics Championships due to a hamstring injury.

"I got injured as we were training at the starting blocks and I opted out because there is no point of me going to the championships when I am not fully fit.

"I would rather rest and recover fully and ahead of the Olympics," Sambu told a local radio station.

"I am so disappointed that I am going to miss out as I had trained so hard and was ready and even avoided Kenyan meets just to get save myself for Addis Ababa because I wanted to go and attain the Olympics qualifying mark at the championships."

The Kenyan team is preparing for the continental event which starts on Wednesday in Ethiopia.

Meanwhile, Kenyan coach Julius Kirwa expressed fear that the 5000 metres women team had not sufficiently prepared on the face on on-form Ethiopian teams.

"Most of our top athletes like Vivian Cheruiyot, Priscah Jepleting, Sylvia Kibet, Linet Masai are all missing and this will make it tough. Ethiopia has selected the likes of Meseret Defar, Gelete Burka and Meselech Melkamu," he said.

"We have had very little training time and the rain has also not helped matters so it will be very tough for our long distance runners," Kirwa explained.