Kenya's unfit Tergat to miss Games

Kenya's former marathon world record holder Paul Tergat said yesterday he would not compete at the Beijing Olympics due to a lack of fitness.

"I have recently come back from training and I'm not fit enough for the Olympics," Tergat told a news conference.

Tergat, 38, missed the London marathon earlier this month for the same reason. He held the marathon record from 2003 until last September, when it was shattered by Ethiopia's Haile Gebrselassie in Berlin.

Gebrselassie has also said he will not run the Olympic marathon, citing fears over air pollution. However, the Ethiopian said earlier this month he would compete in the 10,000 metres race at the Games.

Tergat said a lack of preparation prevented him from competing.

"I only recently completed a military training course and I have not trained well enough for the Olympics," he told reporters in Nairobi.

"I have participated in three Olympics before and that is quite an achievement," he added.