NAIROBI, Jan. 14 (Xinhua) -- World junior 5,000m champion Edward Zakayo says Kenya's young crop of talent is ready to dominate global long-distance running, starting with the World Cross Country Championships in Aarhus, Denmark.
Zakayo and a horde of other top talents will graduate to the senior ranks this year and face their hardest battle to secure their seeding in a ranking competition. But Zakayo says he and his contemporaries are happy to take the challenge in their stride.
"I know this will be different. Last year I competed as a junior and I'm very ready for a new challenge in the senior ranks," Zakayo said on Monday in Nairobi.
"We have done well as young athletes, winning the overall title at the World Junior Championships in Finland. But the senior cadre is a different experience for us, which we want to tackle head on."
Alongside Zakayo, several young athletes will be battling to secure tickets to represent Kenya at to the World Cross Country Championships.
"My main target is to represent Kenya at the 2019 World Cross Country Championships in Aarhus," said Zakayo.
For Zakayo, competing at this stage and representing his country is a dream come true.
"I am looking forward to doing well in the Diamond League. It's a new thing for me because I have never taken part in it before because of school commitments. But now I am free and I believe in myself because I'm still young and I have the speed and endurance," he added.
