Written By | Alex Mbamanya
Seth Akampa (R) won bronze in the Sochi Marathon
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SOCHI
Uganda’s promising long-distance runner Seth Akampa has settled well in Russia, where he is pursuing a nine-month Master’s degree in Sports Administration at the Russian International Olympic University.
His quick adaptation to the new environment has been accompanied by efforts to familiarise himself with the local community in Sochi, where he has received a warm welcome.
This was reflected in his invitation to participate in the 10th-anniversary Alfa-Bank Sochi Marathon, which took place over the weekend.
Competing in the 10km race, Akampa finished third in a time of 30:59 to claim the bronze medal.
“I am so excited to have finished on the podium in one of the great marathons in the Olympic city of Sochi. I am also excited that, of all the people, I was invited to be part of the event, and I honoured the invitation,” Akampa said.
Sochi, located in the Krasnodar Krai region of southern Russia, is remembered for hosting the 2014 Winter Olympic Games.
Seth Akampa with his medal
The Alfa-Bank Sochi Marathon is a major annual running event that serves as the grand finale of the Sochi running season, attracting thousands of professional and amateur runners from different regions.
For Akampa, the race was a valuable experience, as he demonstrated his ability to compete against some of the event’s leading runners. He finished behind local athletes Dmitry Soykka (29:48) and Yaroslav Byakin (30:32), who won gold and silver medals, respectively.
“I have had a good experience running through the valleys and hills of Sochi. Most importantly, the Russians were very excited to see a Ugandan athlete participating and finishing on the podium. I was also excited to see them cheering and rushing to take selfies with me. That is the beauty of sport, and I am looking forward to better performances in the coming races,” Akampa said.
Akampa, who recently graduated with a Bachelor of Laws degree from BSU Mbarara, left Uganda at the end of last month. He is currently pursuing a Master’s degree in Sports Administration at the Russian International Olympic University in Sochi.
His running career took shape at BSU, where he won silver and gold medals while representing the Mbarara-based institution in various competitions, including national, regional and international university championships.
He was on the verge of missing out on the opportunity to pursue his studies in Russia before Athletics Uganda (AU), Beatrice Ayikoru and other individuals intervened to support his ambitions.
