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Odinga praised Pamela Jelimo and Brimin Kipruto for winning gold medals in the women's 800m and men's 3000m Steeplechase races respectively.
"I was thrilled along with all Kenyans to learn of feats of Pamela Jelimo and Brimin Kipruto in winning gold medals for our country at the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing," he said.
Jelimo excelled in the 800 meters finals, while Kipruto's gold came in the 3,000 meters steeplechase, an event Odinga said "is one of my most favourite races".
Odinga said the duo had done the country proud by continuing an amazing traditio n of winning gold against the world's toughest athletes who trained with virtually unlimited resources from a very early age.
"I wish to also congratulate the other champions who won silver and bronze medals yesterday. Surely more medals are on the way," said Odinga, who played football in his youth.
He cautioned Kenyans for taking the "great success in their stride, since we always win Olympic gold and other medals in track events. But the reality is that each medal is a result of painful and long lasting commitment and discipline. No less important, each year the competition for medals gets harder," he said.
On her part first lady Lucy Kibaki commended Kenyan women athletes for their splendid and outstanding performance in the ongoing Beijing Olympic Games.
In a personal message the first lady said: "Congratulations on your wonderful win. I watched you run and I jumped up with joy. I saw our country getting back to its rightful place of pride, fame and dignity.
"Girls you made me very proud, you have made all Kenyan girls, women and children proud of you. You are very good and we love you very much."
For the male athletes, she had a similar message, saying the victory made her heart think of the other youth in the country.
"I want all of them to be like you, to love their country, be ambitious and take sports very seriously. Again congratulations and thank you," she said.
The first lady noted that for the first time in Kenya's history a woman athlete had won a gold medal and it was more remarkable that Pamela Jelimo had taken first place in the very competitive 800 metres while Janeth Jepkosgei won silver.
"At 18 years, Jelimo showed that she had a truly competitive spirit, by outpacing the more experienced athletes to give Kenya her first gold medal in this year' s Olympic Games and the first ever gold medal by a woman athlete.
She congratulated Catherine Ndereba and Eunice Jepkorir won medals on Sunday.
She said she was confident that Ndereba, the reigning world marathon champion, would have done even better were it not for the crowded field and lack of awareness that there was an athlete ahead of her.
The first lady also congratulated Brimin Kipruto and Richard Mateelong for their victories that saw Kenya continue its historic dominance of the 3,000 steeplechase.
She also commended Micah Kogo for winning a bronze medal in the men's 10,000 metets. |
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