Muvunyi tipped to win T46 400m World title

As he prepares for the forthcoming 7th International Paralympic Committee Athletics World Championships, Hermas Cliff Muvunyi has been tipped to win T46 400m World title.

Sunday, October 04, 2015
Hermas Muvunyi celebrates after grabbing Gold at the 6th IPC World championships in Lyon in 2013. (File)

As he prepares for the forthcoming 7th International Paralympic Committee Athletics World Championships, Hermas Cliff Muvunyi has been tipped to win T46 400m World title.

The Championships is scheduled for October 22-31 at the Suhaim Bin Hamad Stadium in Doha, Qatar—the event is a track and field competition for athletes with disabilities and will feature 210 medal events, 119 for men and 91 for female athletes.

The reigning Men’s T46 800m world champion Muvunyi, who, however will compete in the T46 400m as well as T46 1500m because T46 800m has been scrapped from IPC events.

Rwanda’s other representative will be upcoming 21-year debutant Jean Claude Ndayisenga, who will compete in T46 400m. The pair is currently training daily at Amahoro stadium under the guidance of coach Eric Karasira.

The Rwanda National Paralympic Committee (NPC) president Célestin Nzeyimana says the duo earned qualification on merit and has tipped them to make the country proud in Doha.

"Muvunyi has proved that he is a world class athlete, and I have no doubt he will do well at the World Championships. He is vastly experienced and has the quality to win medals,” Nzeyimana told Times Sport on Saturday.

He also noted that apart from fighting for medals, the duo will also be seeking for required minima for the 2016 Paralympic Games slated for September 7-18 in Rio de Janiero, Brazil.

At the 6th edition of the biannual IPC World Championships in 2013 in Lyon, France, Muvunyi clocked 1:54:04 to claim gold in T46 800m category before picking a knee injury in training that forced him to miss out of the 400m category.

All Africa Games gold

Muvunyi made yet more history last month, registering his personal best of 49:16 to retain gold in the Men’s T46 400m category at the 11th All Africa Games in the Brazzaville, the Republic of Congo.

Muvunyi, 27, overcame stiff challenge from hopefuls Elias Ndimulunde (49:52) of Namibia, who claimed silver and Ivory Coast’s Jean Luc Kouame Noumbo who clocked 50:19 to take bronze.

Muvunyi, won gold in 400m and silver in 800m at the 10th All Africa Games in 2011 in Maputo, Mozambique.

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