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Kenya's Javelin king Yego returns with heroic welcome

Xinhua, June 17, 2015 Adjust font size:

Commonwealth and African men's Javelin champion, Julius Yego, returned home to a heroic reception in Nairobi on Tuesday after his record breaking conquest on the international circuit.

All stops were pulled to give the man, who captured global acclaim when he speared to the astounding 91.93m African, IAAF Diamond League and national record in Birmingham a fortnight ago, a welcome fit for a conquering hero.

The field athletics star in a country famed for distance running prowess caused a stir at the busy Jomo Kenyatta International Airport in Nairobi after he landed in the afternoon to a heroic reception.

Celebrations were spearheaded by the country's Sports, Arts and Culture Cabinet Secretary Hassan Wario, as family, relatives, friends and a battery of local and international journalists jostled to command his attention.

Yego, who was clutching his young son Jarvis Kiptoo alongside his 25-year-old wife, Sincy, stood mystified by the rapturous festivities around them as the CS addressed those who had thronged the airport.

"My aim is to be in the medal bracket at the World Championships in Beijing. There' s a lot of work still to be done to achieve that, but my performance has given me hope," the two-time African champion said.

Yego finished behind the man who preceded him as African record-holder, Ihab Abdelrahman of Egypt, with 83.99m against 85.44m at the Moroccan capital.

Having launched his season with a sixth finish (81.98m) at the opening IAAF Diamond League meeting in Doha on May 15, Yego burst to form when he broke his previous NR of 85.04m set in finishing fourth at the 2013 Moscow Worlds when he won the Ostrava Golden Spike on May 26.

He bettered his mark barely a week later, June 4 when he threw 87.71 at the Rome Golden Gala to finish second behind Czech world champion Vitezslav Veseley.

Three days later, Yego stole the headlines at the Sainsbury Birmingham DL meeting when he uncorked a monstrous with a monstrous throw of 91.39m to produce the best throw since 2006 that moved him to number nine on the all time list. Endi