Stuck in Kenya, runner Murali Gavit wants to return to India

Indian runner Murali Gavit Kumar who had gone to Kenya for his training has got stuck in the country and now yearns to return to India.

Kumar had a qualifying event (for Olympics) scheduled in Kenya, but with Coronavirus pandemic and majority of nations suspending international travel, the long-distance runner has got stuck in the East African nation.

"I had reached here on January 10 to train for the qualifying meets in Europe and the Olympics, I am now stuck in Iten. I step out to purchase necessary items but restrictions over here are strict. I want to come back to India and be with my family," Gavit told Times of India.

Kenya is under a partial lockdown to prevent the spread of the virus. The country has reported 172 cases of COVID-19 with six people dying due to the disease.

The 23-year-old Kumar trains under Hugo van den Broek of The Netherlands at Iten's High Altitude Training Centre. But with restrictions coming into affect Kumar is finding it difficult to train too.

"Group training has been discontinued. I manage to do very little training. I was training on my own. But, back home my parents are concerned about me. " added Kumar.

Also Read: World Athletics suspends Olympic qualification period until December