(Reuters) -Kenyan 10,000 metres runner and 2019 New York Marathon winner Geoffrey Kamworor was “very disappointed” after he was forced to pull out of the Tokyo Olympics due to a foot injury, his representatives told Reuters.
The 28-year-old is a three times world Half Marathon champion and previous world record holder, and had hopes of a medal in the 10,000m after winning the national trials.
He won silver at the 2015 world championships in Beijing, behind Britain’s Mo Farah.
BBC Sport Africa initially reported Kamworor pulling out of the tournament.
The injury comes after he was hit by a motorcycle while training near his home in June last year, suffering a fractured tibia.
“Geoffrey was in wonderful shape. Unfortunately, he developed a painful spot in his foot which is preventing him from being able to run 25 laps on the track on spikes by next week,” his manager Valentijn Trouw told Reuters on Friday.
The Tokyo Olympics, delayed for a year due to the coronavirus pandemic, officially kick-off on Friday in a much more pared-down fashion than is typical for what is considered the world’s greatest sporting event.
The final of the men’s 10,000m race is scheduled to take place on July 30.
Jos Hermens, who also represents the Kenyan, told Reuters that Kamworor was “very disappointed.”
“But he is a very positive person, always looking ahead to the future and making new plans,” he said.
(Reporting by Alan Baldwin in London and Omar Mohammed in Tokyo, editing by Pritha Sarkar and Hugh Lawson)
