Commonwealth Games 800m champion Mary Moraa says her win at last night’s Rabat Diamond League did not come as a surprise to her as she has been working hard in training for the race.
Moraa said she expected to put in a record breaking performance in the Moroccan capital as she is currently in peak shape, following on from her win at the Kip Keino Classic on the 13th of this month.
“Tonight was my second outdoor race of the season after a first one at home in Nairobi. So, I am of course very pleased by my result. Time is great but to be honest it is the result I expected. I knew I had the shape to accomplish this kind of race tonight in Rabat,” the World 800m bronze medalist said.
The national 400m champion clocked a season’s best of 1:58.72 to clinch first place, ahead of second-placed Australian Catriona Bisset (2:00.11) and American Sage Hurta-Klecker who also timed a season’s best of 2:00.62 in third.
Moraa, nonetheless, admitted that the race was no walk in the park for her, noting that she was exhausted by the time she crossed the finish line.
“At the end, I felt a lot of lactics in my legs, that is why I needed some time to recover. But I have no injury, all is good. After running in Paris on June 9th, I will travel back to Kenya for training,” she said.
The win was Moraa’s third since April this year when she reigned supreme at the Botswana Grand Prix where she clocked 50.44 to win the women’s 400m.
It was business as usual for the 22-year-old at the fourth edition of the Kip Keino Classic World Continental Tour where she timed 1:58.83 to win the women’s 800m at the Moi International Sports Centre Kasarani.
In the overall scheme of things, her hot streak bodes well for Moraa who will be one of the favourites to watch at August’s World Championships in Budapest, Hungary – as far as the women’s 800m is concerned.
Moraa says her focus is to make it to the podium – as she did last year at the World Championships in Oregon – and possibly clinch the world crown.
She is, however, aware of the intense competition that awaits her from other hopefuls.
“At the World Championships in Budapest, my goal is to get a medal. Being on a podium would be great, there are many girls but only three medals,” she said.
At last year’s leg of the Diamond League in Rabat, Moraa clocked 1:58.93 to win the same race.
