Team Rwanda finished 10th out of 39 teams at the World Cross Country Championship held at Bisharat golf course in Amman, Jordan over the weekend. Gervais Hakizimana was Rwanda’s best finisher in 42nd position clocking 37minutes and seven second followed by Fellixe Ntirenganya, who came 44th in 37:07). Jean Baptiste Simukeka was 48th in a time of 37 minutes and 17 seconds; Sylain Rukundo came in 52nd position in a time 37 minutes and 29 seconds while Eric Sebahire finished in the 82nd position after clocking 38 minutes and 11 seconds. The girls performed even poorer with the best finisher; Adeline Musanyezeu coming in 57th position clocking 22 minutes and 50 seconds. Jean d’arc Mukakigeli clocked 22 minutes and 50 seconds to finish 55th and Claudette Mukasakindi came in the 53rd position in a time of 29 minutes and 05 seconds. The team coach Innocent Rwabuhihi attributed the poor performance to bad weather, “It was very cold, so the athletes could not cope with the climate.” “But in the future we hope to be going for such competitions early enough to acclimatize with such weather conditions,” Rwabuhihi told Times Sport yesterday, a day after the team return home. As expected, Kenya, Ethiopia and Eritrea dominated the proceedings, further confirming Africa’s superiority in long distance running. Ends
