Baringo to roll out red carpet for Cherono upon return

The newly crowned Boston Marathon champion Lawrence Cherono is set to receive a heroic welcome when he jets back to the country after he defied all the odds to clinch the title on his Boston debut on Monday.

In one of the finest sprints finishes in marathons, Cherono edged Ethiopia’s Lelisa Desisa for his maiden crown after clocking 2:07:57, a second ahead of the two- time Boston champion and the reigning New York City marathon champion.

Speaking to Citizen Digital, Athletics Kenya (AK) Baringo County chairman Barnabas Kitilit saluted Cherono who hails from the county and whom he also coached at the early stages of his career.

“As the chairman of AK Baringo, I wish to congratulate Cherono for what he did on Monday. Here in Baringo we will organise for him a grand reception when he comes back because he has made our county proud,” said Kitilit.

Kitilit who also runs Torongo Athletics Training Camp said he had high hopes on Cherono having trained him and his siblings.

“I have interacted a lot with the family of Cherono; training Lawrence and his two brothers (Lucas and Benson). I trained Lawrence in the early 2000s when I was at Boror High School before he finally graduated to road races and has since gone places through sheer hard work,” noted the retired teacher.

According to Kitilit, the win further highlights the strength of Baringo County in producing high calibre athletes. The county has produced the likes of the veteran athlete Paul Tergat who is the current National Olympic Committee of Kenya (NOCK) president and the reigning New York City marathon champion Mary Keitany among others.

“The win further shows that we have so many athletes in Baringo and thus my rallying call to the leaders from the county is for them to support our athletes especially when it comes to training camps that are yet to be completed,” added the veteran trainer who is also the secretary of AK Youth Committee.

After winning the 2018 Amsterdam Marathon title in the second successive year, Cherono was treated to a huge welcome at his home in Barwessa.