Kenya's top marathon runners snub world championships

NAIROBI, May 23 (Reuters) Kenya's marathon world record holder Paul Tergat, London champion Martin Lel and Boston winner Robert Cheruiyot have all said they will not be available for August's world championships in Osaka.

''We approached all the top runners but they told us they had contracts to run elsewhere around that time,'' Athletics Kenya secretary general, David Okeyo, told Reuters today.

''We respect their decisions because even the team we have in our provisional list is composed of very good runners,'' he said.

Last year's London marathon winner Felix Limo, who was third behind Lel in April, and Rotterdam champion Joshua Chelanga, have also been excluded from the provisional Kenyan team.

Daniel Njenga, who won the Tokyo marathon in February, and Vienna victor Luke Kibet lead the squad.

Four-times Boston champion, Catherine Ndereba, heads a women's team which includes Rita Jeptoo, who won in Boston last year, and former short course cross country world champion Edith Masai.

REUTERS RN BST2310