THE international men’s 800m at the upcoming Boyce and Jefford Track and Field Classic VIII, set for Linden at the MSC Ground on August 12-13, has become very interesting with the inclusion of one of Uganda’s top middle distance athletes, Julius Mutekanga.
Mutekanga is a sub-1:50.00s 800m athlete, with a personal best time is 1:46.30s, which he ran to qualify for the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) World Championships in 2011 in Daegu. He is also a national record holder for his nation, just last year he broke Uganda’s national 600m record.

United States of America–based Guyanese athlete, Kevin Bayley, who is the defending champion in this race, will be hard pressed to produce his best with the inclusion of Mutekanga, who represented the African country at the 2012 Olympic Games in London.
Bayley will be back to attempt a title defence as well as Trinidad and Tobago’s Ashton Gill, who was second to Bayley last year. Put Mutekanga in the midst and the race promises to be one of the highlights of the 2017 Championships in Linden.
Ironically, 2011 is the year that Dennis Horatio established the Boyce and Jefford 800m record with 1:55.90s. With, such an international field in the race this year along with the quality of local athletes, that record seems to be under serious threat.

Apart from the World Championships and Olympic Games, Mutekanga also ran at the World Indoor Championships. The 29-year-old competes for the Central Park Track Club in the United States, which is sponsored by New Balance, as an elite athlete.
However, the Guyanese would be eager to ensure that the prize money up for grabs in the race stays at home. As such, Guyana Defence Force (GDF) standout, Anfernee Headecker along with Police’s Quacy Morian and Samuel Lynch cannot be ruled out of the top three finishers.

The race is also likely to include Desmond Amsterdam and Daniel Melville. The winner of the race will pocket US$250, while second and third place gets US$150 and US$100, respectively. The male 800m event is one of six international events scheduled for the Classic.
The other international events are the male and female 200m, female 1500m and the male and female Long Jump.