Kenyan dream team deferred

The Kenyans on the Puma 4x1500 meter relay team had hoped to break the 23-year old world record in the event this Saturday at the Penn Relays. But, in all likelihood, they won't even be able to get into the country, let alone the record books. According to Penn men's track coach Charlie Powell -- who is also the 800-1500 meter event coordinator for the USATF Olympic Development Committee -- the three members of the Kenyan team who applied for U.S. visas last month were still without them as of yesterday. "There's a 99 percent chance the Kenyans won't be coming," Powell said. Two members of the Kenyan team -- Bernard Legat and Benjamin Kapsoiya -- already have visas, but at least two of the three other Kenyans manager James Templeton planned on bringing to Philadelphia need visas to field a team. "It's obviously very frustrating," Templeton said at a press conference last Wednesday. "There's no consideration made to world-class athletes. You apply as a Kenyan, as an African, and it's not that easy getting into the United States." The Kenyan Puma team seemed destined to break the world record of 14:38.8 set in 1977 by a West German team of Thomas Wessinghage (who clocked a 3:38.8 split), Harold Hudak (3:40.2), Michael Lederer (3:42.6) and Karl Fleschen (3:37.3). The Kenyans needed to average 3:39.7 per 1500 -- not by any means a stretch for two of the Kenyan runners. Legat ran sub-3:31 on successive weekends last August and has the best 5,000 meter time (13:23) in the world so far this year. Benjamin Kipkirui, meanwhile, has run 3:33.16. The other Kenyan runners were to be no pushovers either. Japheth Kinutai was third in the world rankings in the 800 last year (1:42.6), while youngster Kapsoiya and steeplechaser Kipkirui Moisii are also world-renowned. A United States team based in Washington, D.C., was supposed to push the Kenyans to the world record in the Olympic Development race, but now these Americans will be the favorites on Saturday afternoon. The U.S. team -- led by 3:32.73 1500 runner Steve Holman and 800 meter star Rich Kenah -- is certainly a fast group, but isn't expected to challenge the world record. The Americans might be challenged just to win the race, as a team of University of Arkansas alumni -- including last year's Penn Relays Outstanding Collegiate Men's Relay Athlete Seneca Lassiter -- will also be running. Three Reebok teams are entered in the Saturday race, which is schedule to start at 2:25 p.m. But the absence of the Kenyan team has taken most of the luster out of what was anticipated to be one of the most exciting events of the day. According to Templeton, this is not the first time his runners have been stifled by rules of entrance into a country. "Visas and customs remains our biggest hurdle, wherever we're traveling," Templeton said.

Please note All comments are eligible for publication in The Daily Pennsylvanian.