Keitany blaze her way to Sports Personality award

Keitany blaze her way to Sports Personality award

New York City Marathon champion Mary Keitany was on Wednesday named the StarTimes Sports Personality of the Month for November.

The 36-year-old won her fourth New York City Marathon in November, registering major negative splits in the second half of the race, to post  2 hours, 22 minutes and 48 seconds, breaking the New York marathon course record and registering the second-fastest women’s time in event’s history. Keitany has won New York City marathon four times thus — 2014, 2015, 2016 and 2018.

And on a morning of double joy,  Keitany was also named the New York road runner pro performer of the year 2018, following her fourth win at the New York Marathon.

“This is quite a surprise for me, I did not expect to receive an award on Kenyan soil but I am humbled beyond words for being selected for the November award,” said Keitany.

Speaking during the award ceremony, StarTimes Marketing and PR Director Mr. Japhet Akhulia said: “Keitany becomes our 17th recipient of the monthly StarTimes sports personality award and is a true testament of our progressive effort to recognize outstanding sports men and women. We will continue to support this noble course key in encouraging sporting excellence in the country.”

She beat experienced rally driver Carl Flash Tundo, who registered his sixth win of the season with victory at the Guru Nanak Rally and subsequently won his 4th Kenya National Rally Championship and Angela Okutoyi who finished second at the Africa Cup of Nations in Botswana.

Others who were in the race for the November gong were Samuel Njoroge, who won the Lagos tennis Open and Kenya Defence Forces boxers including Black-Moses Mathenge, Nick Okoth, Isaac Meja, Simon Mulinge, and Fredrick Onyango – who all won silver medals at the Africa Military Games in Morocco. Keitany walked away with a trophy, a 43-inch StarTimes digital television set and a cash prize of Sh.100, 000.

Keitany has also won the London Marathon three times (2011 2012 and 2017) and also won the Ras Khaimah Half Marathon in 2009 in a new world record of 1:05:50 and is one of the most decorated marathoners the country has produced in the last decade.

The Sports Personality of the Month Awards is a partnership between StarTimes and SJAK to reward all deserving sports personalities on a monthly basis in a bid to bolster the general performance of sport in the country as well as whip up the enthusiasm of country’s sportsmen and women.

 

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New York City marathon Mary Keitany Sports Personality award Star-times

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