This archive report was first published on 6 October 2019.
On October 5, 2019, the 14th edition of the Madoka half marathon took place at Ngerenyi Farm in Taita Taveta County, with Peter Mutitu and Cynthia Jerop emerging as the champions.
Cynthia Jerop, a 24-year-old from Nandi County, made her debut at the event and braved the muddy terrains of the Taita hills to win with a time of 1:18.55. She outshone the 2018 champion Delving Merigor, who came in second with a time of 1:19.20.
Jerop credited her husband for encouraging her to participate in the event, saying, 'I have won several races locally, but for Madoka half marathon, I was encouraged by my husband to take part. He believed in me and I didn’t want to disappoint him.'
However, the men's race was marred by controversy, with Geoffrey Koross being disqualified for failing to pay registration fees before the race. Koross had clocked a time of 1:16.46, but the organizers awarded Peter Mutitu the first position after he clocked 1:17:42.
Coast-based Panuel Mkumgo was also disqualified for using a shortcut, while Steven Muendo claimed that they were misled by the course marshals after running only 12 km thinking that they had run 21 km.
According to Marsden Madoka, the race patron, the aim of the event is to nurture talent and give Coastal people a sporting opportunity.
