Grenada javelin star Anderson Peters relishing Yego battle at Kip Keino Classic

Two-time World Champion in the Javelin, Grenada's Anderson Peters, is looking forward to his looming battle with Kenya's Julius Yego, when they meet at this weekend's Kip Keino Classic Athletics event in Nairobi.

The sixth edition of the Classic, which will take place at the Ulinzi Stadium in Lang'ata, Nairobi, promises to deliver world-class performances, going by the projected field expected, and the Javelin will be one to watch, with Yego and Peters the headline throwers.

Olympic champion Thomas Röhler of Germany is also expected to compete, making for a competitive field. The three are experienced on the Diamond League circuit and bring medal-winning resumes.

Peters, who arrived in Nairobi over the past weekend in preparation for the Classic, is looking forward to taking on the challenge that Yego and Röhler bring, especially with the context of a home crowd that is usually supportive of it's home athletes.

With the World Athletics Championships to be held in Tokyo Japan in September fast approaching, Peters is eyeing a solid display to build momentum ahead of the year's big event in Japan.

"I'm excited and glad to be in Nairobi. Competing in Kenya is always special. I have a long-standing friendly rivalry with Julius Yego whom I watched when I was younger. His story has been a serious motivation in my career in Javelin," he told Radio Generation Sport.

"He was the first non-European and African world champion, and his story and his win has motivated many of us to take up this sport and push forward in our careers."

Peters' real goal this year is a win in the World Championships in Tokyo, Japan September 13 to 21 and his season has started slowly this year as he builds towards the big trip to Tokyo.

He won his home event in March at the Grenada Championships with a cumulative throw of 74.90 metres.

He began his overseas tours in the Diamond League in Doha on May 16 with a strong throw, landing a well-deserved 85.64 metres and finishing third behind Germany’s Julian Weber and 2020 Olympic champion Neeraj Chopra of India. He also recently competed in

Weber set the world lead throw with a humongous 91.06 metres effort in Doha, while Chopra managed an impressive 90.23 metres.

The world record is the still insurmountable 98.48 set by Jan Zelezny on 25th May 1996. Zelezny also holds the record for the highest ever throw, at 98.48 metres, as ratified by World Athletics.

Just last week, Peters competed at the Janusz Kusociński Memorial in Chorzów, Poland, where he once again finished third with a cumulative throw of 83.34 metres.

He is hoping that he is now peaking at the right time and says that his chances of victory are much higher than ever before.

"In my estimation, I truly feel that my form is very good and I think decent for this time of year, especially with a World Championships coming up. There’s still some sharpening to do in some cases, but I feel great and it's still early. The season is long, and there is time to prepare," Peters quipped.

"I think I've got time to adjust and fine-tune everything on my side to make sure I’m at my best for the World Championships."

Peters returns to the Classic after competing in 2023, where he came second behind Röhler with a throw of 85.72 metres.

When posed to him what potential distance he would imagine to make at the Ulinzi Stadium, Peters is coy but confident.

"I'm expecting a good competition, going by the experience last time. The weather was good. Wind was perfect and there was a very noisy crowd. I’m eager to see how this new venue compares and how the fans turn up again," he stated.

The sixth edition of the Kip Keino Classic has been moved to the Ulinzi Stadium from the Nyayo National Stadium, which failed to complete installation of a new running track on time for the May 31 showdown, which is expected to showcase the best in Athletics and Field Events.