Mpani hits personal best time in Russia
Grevazio Mpani clocked 14: 15:65 minutes and came 31st in men’s 5 000 metres at the 14th World Athletics Championship at Luzhiniki Stadium, Russia yesterday——his personal best time.
International Association of Athletics Federation (IAAF) website indicated the 19-year-old Lilongwe runner finished last from a field of 45 runners drawn from 19 countries. Ethiopian Hagos Gerbrhiwet won gold in 13:23:22 seconds.
In a telephone interview from Russia, Athletics Association of Malawi (AAM) president Godfrey Phiri said Mpani can now dream of Olympic Games’ qualification after rubbing shoulders with the best.
“We are talking about a boy who has just been promoted from the juniors category rubbing shoulders with the world’s best runners from countries such as Ethiopia and Kenya. He has a bright future,” Phiri explained.
Mpani’s personal best time has improved from 14:32, according to his coach John Mwathiwa.
But there are conflicting statements on whether this is a new record time for Malawi. Olympic qualifying time is said to be 13:32 minutes.
George Mambosasa’s 14:10 minutes achieved in similar category in the 1980s is well known to be the country’s best. But others suggest that Rodwell Kamwendo improved the record by clocking 14:08 metres.
