sports monthly - issue 85

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SPORTS MONTHLYAPRIL - 2014

6 164000 550003

APRIL/MAY 2014ISSUE 85

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SPORTS MONTHLY APRIL - 2014

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contents

Editor’sNOTE

Cover page: Oscar Pistorius in pensive

mood during his trial

St. John's win MTG tournament pg. 4

Kobus tells CK to stop coach turnover pg. 5

Cover story pg. 6

Rugby Sevens chances for Rio 2016 pg.14

Lesser sports stand little chance pg.16

Sahara's dividng factor pg.20

Kenyan cricket of freefall mode pg. 22

Sudanese football clubs own stadia pg. 28

Oguda says hooliganism on the decline pg. 30

Kenyan climber attempts Mt. Everest pg. 33

Last word pg. 34

Sports Monthly magazine, Kenya’s only sports periodical has stood the test of time since its inception in 2000. Fourteen years on the stands is no mean feat especially at a time when many sports publications have barely lived beyond their second edition. Now, the magazine has moved a notch higher to cope with the information and technology super highway that dictates the current trends in the world presently. The magazine can currently be accessed on Twitter: @ sportsmonthlyke; OR Facebook: Sports Monthly; OR email: [email protected]. You do not have any reason not to catch up with the latest developments in sports both locally and internationally through a medium of your choice.

Email: alpha.sportsmonthly@gmail.comwww.sportsmonthly.wananchi.comTwitter: @sportsmonthlykeFacebook: Sports Monthly

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St. John’s Secondary School hammered Kilifi Mixed and Ganze Secondary schools in the semi-finals during the Moving the Goalposts (MTG) Secondary School tournament that saw its finals being played on March 1, 2014 at the MTG field.

St. John’s beat Kilifi Mixed 6 –0 and Ganze Secondary 9 – 0 before taking up Waa Girls in the final. Waa Girls found their way to the final with a 1

St. John's win MTG school tournament

– 0 win over Shangweni and 3 – 1 victory against Godoma.

Expectations were high before the final between the defending champions St. John’s and Waa Girls, who are one of the best girls’ football teams in the coast and who were participating for the first time in the tournament.

MTG has expanded its activities

to Kwale County, which makes the schools in Kwale now also able to participate in MTG’s tournaments.

It was clear from the start that St. John’s wanted to prolong their hold on the title. In the first half the young women from Kaloleni attacked successfully, scoring three times through Rehema Mwachiro (1) and Mwanahalima Adam (2).

Although Waa tried to change the game in the second half it was again Mwanahalima who scored and made it clear to all football fans that St. John’s were the justified winners of the 2014 tournament.

Mwanahalima also bagged the award of the top scorer of the tournament. Moving the Goalposts Secondary School tournament kicked off on February 15, 2014 with matches in Vitengeni, Kaloleni and Ganze. The annual event was held for the 13th time in a row and

combined football, girls’ leadership and peer led health education.

Thirty two girls’ school football teams participated this year during which 57 matches were played and 640 participated in the games. All matches and peer education sessions were organized by MTG’s young women; staff and volunteers.

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Cricket Kenya has been told to stop the high turnover of coaches to the national team to enhance continuity in the squad. Olivier Kobus, Cricket Kenya General Manager who was hired by the board last November, said coaches engaged to guide the national team should be bonded on long term contracts for uninterrupted grounding.

“You can’t keep on chopping and changing coaches and expect good results. There must be stability and continuity in the team because every coach comes along with his own style,” Kobus told Sports Monthly.

“I this respect I am 100 percent behind Steve Tikolo, who is presently an interim coach cum player to be confirmed as national coach owing to his experience and most importantly because he gets along well with the players.”

Kobus, a South African national, said molding a national team for a World Cup outing is a process that takes as long as four years and not two months which he pointed out is a common occurrence in Kenya.

“Good players don’t fall from trees. You do not shake a tree and they fall down. Good players are created through a system by way of good structures,” Kobus said.

Kenya has had as many as four coaches in the last four years; an average of one coach per year. He said Kenya should overcome the post-2003 disappointment when Kenyan cricket was at the finest moment internationally when the country reached the World Cup semi-finals.

Kobus tells CK to stop high turnover of coaches

“Kenya has been blamed for failing to capitalise on the 2003 World Cup success. The plunge after an elating outing is not something new to cricket and has also happened to Australia and South Africa in the past.”

Kobus said such a drop is a transitional period and occurs especially when good players all retire at the same time, and gave as an example the case of Australia where Shane Warne, Steve Waugh and company left the national team collectively.

“South Africa also suffered the same fate when Hansie Cronjie, Bob Woolmer alongside others left together. However, the recovery period depends on how fast a team can adjust and here is where structures play an important part.”

He said Kenya should nurture the Under-19 team as the squad of the future if the country hopes to rejoin participation in future World Cup

tournaments.

“It is saddening to note that Kenya has lost participation in two World Cups; the ICC World Cup and the Twenty20 World Cup and for the country to make a re-entry, it must start molding a team now with a foresight of four years.”

Kobus appealled to the CK Board to work together as a team to uplift the game of cricket in the country.

“Because I am new and with no past history and baggage in Kenyan cricket, I hope to bring fresh a perspective into cricket in Kenya. To achieve this, I have been gathering as much information as I can from various stakeholders."

Kobus appreciates Cricket Kenya’s group efforts, saying in Kenya he has been given a car to find his way around in whereas in Holand, he had to make do with a bicycle

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The Olympian and his girlfriend seemed to have the perfect romance – until he killed her. Four days before Oscar Pistorius shot her in the elbow, hip and head through the bathroom door at his home in Pretoria, Reeva Steenkamp tweeted a message about violence against women in South Africa.

"I woke up in a happy safe home this morning," the 29-year-old wrote. "Not everyone did. Speak out against the rape of individuals."

As Valentine's Day broke with the news that the 26-year-old who became a global icon in 2012 by running in both the Paralympics and the Olympics had killed his girlfriend, Steenkamp's words only added to the sense of improbability. Steenkamp had been dating Pistorius only since November 2013.

But beyond the painful irony of a

Oscar Pistorius and South Africa's culture of violence

woman killed by gunshots, there was also the killer's defense: that Steenkamp was the tragic victim of a racially splintered society in which fear and distrust are so pervasive that citizens shoot first and ask questions later.

And then there was the murder scene itself, a locked bathroom within a fortified mansion in an elite enclave surrounded by barbed wire, in a country where more than half the population earns less than $65 (5,525 shillings) a month and killings are now so common that they reach the highest echelons of society and celebrity.

To understand Pistorius and Steenkamp, to understand South Africa, it helps to know the place where the couple chose to spend their holiday. Cape Town has arguably the most beautiful geographical feature of any city in the world: Table

Mountain. From Table Mountain, the city radiates out in easy scatterings across the olive, woody slopes as they plunge into the sea.

But Cape Town is also home to about two million of the city’s 3.5 million people who live to the east in tin and wood shacks and social housing built on the collection of estuary dunes and baking sand flats called the Cape Flats.

Most of them are black. Cape Town's beautiful, affluent centre is merely the wholesome end of the wide spectrum that describes South Africa's culture and its defining national trait as the most unequal country on earth.

In his 2008 book “Thin Blue”, for which he spent 350 hours on patrol with South Africa's police, Jonny Steinberg describes the relationship between police and criminals as part "negotiated settlement," part "tightly choreographed" street theatre in which criminals make a show of running away and officers half-heartedly pursue them.

His thesis is that "the consent of citizens to be policed is a pre-condition of policing." And in South Africa for two generations now, that consent has been lacking.

Unable to rely on the state, South Africans are forced to cope with crime essentially on their own, and over time, that has shaped the nation. Policing is largely a private concern.

In 2011, South Africa's private security industry employed 411,000 people, more than double the number of police officers. In the townships, vigilante beatings and killings are the norm.

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By Pistorius' account, his fear of an intruder – the fear that keeps the people of South Africa apart still - caused the man so many saw as a unifying figure to shoot his girlfriend dead. If South Africa reveals its reality through crime, it articulates its dreams through sports. Pistorius was the latest incarnation of South African hope.

He was born without a fibula in either leg, and both were amputated below the knee before he reached his first

birthday. Using prosthetics, Pistorius went on to play able-bodied sports at Pretoria Boys High School before a knee injury left him on the sidelines.

Advised to run for his recovery, he began clocking astonishing times using carbon-fiber blades that copied the action of a cheetah. In 2012 in London, he took two Paralympic gold medals and one silver and ran in an Olympic final and semifinal.

Pistorius credits his drive to his

mother, who died at 42 when he was 15. He has the dates of her life tattooed in Roman numerals on his right arm, and by his account Sheila Pistorius did much to stamp the Afrikaner spirit of the devout, stubborn pioneer on her son.

Just before the 11-month-old Pistorius underwent the operation to remove his lower legs, she wrote a letter for him to read when he was older.

"The real loser is never the person

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who crosses the finishing line last," she wrote. "The real loser is the person who sits on the side. The person who does not even try to compete."

Pistorius has said he remembers Sheila, a working single mother who had divorced his father, shouting to her children as they got ready to leave the house, "Get your shoes! And Oscar, get your legs!" By giving him no special treatment or pity but showing no hint of underestimating him either, Sheila gave her son a belief not just that he was normal but also that he was special, divinely destined for the extraordinary.

In a long battle with other athletes and sporting authorities, who argued that his prosthetics gave him an unfair advantage, he demanded to be treated like any other athlete – and succeeded as few ever had.

In South Africa, Pistorius' achievements resonated deepest of all. In a nation obsessed by disadvantage, he was the ultimate meritocrat, a runner with no legs who ignored the accidents of his birth to compete against the best.

Many South Africans no doubt would have seen his colour before anything

else. But for some, he existed, like Mandela, above and beyond South Africa's divisions. He had outraced the past and symbolised a hoped-for future.

With Pistorius' arrest for Steenkamp's murder, South Africa's dreams collided with its reality. Pistorius doesn't dispute that he killed Steenkamp. Rather he contends his action was reasonable in the circumstances.

Pistorius recalled how the couple spent Valentine's eve quietly at his two-story home. "She was doing her yoga exercises and I was in bed watching television. My prosthetic legs were off."

After Steenkamp finished her exercises, she gave him a Valentine's present that he promised not to open until the next day. Then the couple fell asleep in his second-floor bedroom.

Pistorius used to tell journalists that he never slept easy. In his affidavit, he said he was "acutely aware" of South Africa's violent crime. "I have received death threats before. I have also been a victim of violence and of burglaries before. For that reason I kept my firearm, a 9-mm Parabellum, underneath my bed when I went to bed at night."

Pistorius awoke in the early hours of Feb. 14. He remembered a fan he had left on his balcony and fetched it by hobbling on his stumps. Closing the sliding doors behind him, he "heard a noise in the bathroom ... I felt a sense of terror rushing over me. There are no burglar bars across the bathroom window and I knew that contractors who worked at my house had left the ladders outside."

"I grabbed my 9-mm pistol. I screamed for him/them to get out of my house ... I knew I had to protect Reeva and myself ... I fired shots at the toilet door and shouted to Reeva to phone the police. She did not respond and I moved backwards out of the bathroom, keeping my eyes on the bathroom entrance.

“Everything was pitch dark ... When I reached the bed, I realised Reeva was not in bed. That is when it dawned on me that it could have been Reeva who was in the toilet."

Pistorius says he put on his legs, beat down the locked door with a cricket bat, called an ambulance and carried Steenkamp downstairs to his front door, where he laid her on the floor. "She died in my arms," he wrote.

Despite the adulation he received, that isolation seemed to have touched Pistorius. Fragmented and behind their barricades, individual South Africans just get to watch.

Just another South African story was the weary headline over a picture of Pistorius and Steenkamp in the iMaverick, a South African online magazine.

Indeed, the media attention directed at the Pistorius case unearthed so many similar South African stories.

A nation whose racial reconciliation is even today hailed as an example to the world is, in reality, ever more dangerously splintered by crime.

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Three month Nato bombardment helped Serbia produce quality players

A leading Serbian coach has said the three month bombardment of Yugoslavia by the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) forces lent a hand in producing first-class tennis players. Dusan Milojkovic, President of Serbia Coaching Committee said Serbians went through very hard time between March and June 1999 during which they were also under economic sanctions.

“During the period, children did not go to school. Players engaged in a lot of tennis and a lot of tournaments were organized to forget the problems,”

Milojkovic told Sports Monthly during an occasion to mark the World Tennis Day.

The coach, who is also the General Secretary of Tennis Association in the province of Vojvodina, said it was during that period that world-ranked players like current World No. 2 male Novak Djokovich, Janko Tipsarevic, Viktor Troicki, Dusan Lajovic and Filip Krajinovic molded their play.Among the female players are former Wimbledon champion and World No. 1 Jelena Jankovic; 2008 World No. 1 Ana Ivanovic; Bojana Jovanovski and

Vesna Dolonch. The NATO bombing of Yugoslavia was a military operation against the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia during the Kosovo War which led to the withdrawal of Yugoslav forces from Kosovo and put an end to the war.

“To be No. 1 in any sport in the world, one has to go through much suffering and pain, and the commitment of the players as well as the support of their parents supplemented their efforts,” Milojkovic said.

“The players went through a lot of anguish during which they had to borrow money around to finance their travels to attend tournaments.”

March 3 was set aside by the International Tennis Federation (ITF) to promote tennis and increase participation among players around the globe. In its second edition, it was Kenya’s first time to mark the occasion which was marked in 74 nations including in London, New York and Hong Kong where games featured current and former professional players.

Maina Kamau, Deputy Commissioner of Sports told the over 100 school children who gathered to mark the occasion to observe discipline and desist from bad habits if they wanted to go far with the game. Milojkovic said Kenya has great potential for the game judging from the interest showed by the young ones and the facilities available to play the game.

“In Serbia, there are over 3200 players out of a population of seven million, but here in kenya you have a larger base. However, because there are no local heroes in tennis like there are in athletics, Kenya needs to up the stakes in tennis,” the coach said.

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There were hardly any fans at Nairobi’s Jomo Kenyatta International Airport to greet the Kenyan team when they returned from New Zealand after losing the ODI status.

According to Aasif Karim, who was Kenya’s first captain after the team got the one day international (ODI) status in 1997, cricket in his country is now dead.

Speaking exclusively over telephone from Nairobi, he says, “I am not surprised as I had seen this fall coming almost five to seven years back. Kenyan cricket was in a coma for the last five years and is now dead and buried,” Karim said.

Cricket in Kenya 'dead', says former captain Karim

“Having started from humble beginnings to play for Kenya at the age of 17 in 1980 and finished at the World Cup 2003 in South Africa semi finals, it pains me to see where Kenyan cricket has gone”.

When Kenya got ODI status 1997, Karim was appointed captain. At that time, Bangladesh also got the ODI status. Until 2003, Kenya was 8-1 ahead between the two countries. Since then it has been a disaster for Kenya, whereas Bangladesh has moved on to a much a higher level.

“All stakeholders will need to get together to chart a way forward to revive cricket in Kenya. If at all that

happens sincerely, correctly, I think it will take at least 10 years to be a force in international cricket at the top level,” he added.

“We have excellent facilities, weather. We just need dedicated and competent people to run cricket!”

Karim’s sentiments were supported by current and former international cricket players.

“There is no need to substantiate the obvious. It is clear to the entire cricket fraternity in Kenya that the game met a painful demise long time ago,” Maurice Odumbe, another former Kenyan captain said.

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Egypt junior tennis coach says the fact that North Africans junior tennis players frequently travel to Europe for tournaments against seasoned players gives them an edge in continental competitions.

Mohammed El Sahafy who is in Nairobi for the Africa Junior Tennis Championship told Xinhua on Friday that the exposure they get in Europe is majorly the reason the teams are performing well at the tournament.

“Morocco, Libya, Tunisia and my home country all belong to the Mediterranean and it is easier to travel to France, Spain and Italy. Morocco and Spain are separated by the Strait of Gibraltar by a 13km stretch of sea.”

Proximity to Europe favour North African tennis, says Egyptian coach

The International Tennis Federation (ITF) Level 2 coach said coaches also travel a lot to Europe where they gain great experience in training players.

“Good coaches must attend ITF courses to get the right tactics. East Africans therefore have to play a lot of tournaments against tougher opponents to play catch-up. They also need to have a bigger base of good players.”

Players from the region currently taking part in the

ongoing Nairobi event have put on good performances against their opponents from other regions apart from the South Africans who are the defending champions.

El Sahafy (29) said all his eight players have made it to the second round and predicts tough matches against his North African compatriots and players from South Africa.

He said compared to Kenya that has only two Level 2 coaches, which is the highest certification locally Egypt boasts of over 25.

“The turmoil in Egypt immensely affected sports between 2011 and 2012 and athletes feared venturing out owing to insecurity. However, now everything is back to normal because the situation has been contained and players are back to the clubs,” the coach said.

He described tennis as an expensive game, but credited ITF with promoting the game in an attempt to reach all.

The coach, who represented Egypt in two Africa Junior Championship tournaments in 1999 and 2001, praised the high standards on display at the competition and named Egypt, Morocco and South Africa as the countries in contention for the title.

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Chartered Bank’s ‘Road to Anfield’ football tournament. The win has granted the Standard Group a final slot to the United Kingdom

where they will be flown to play in a global championship involving 13 other nations at the historic Liverpool’s Anfield ground in May.

The Standard Group that beat 32 other contestants to the diadem won the highly contested and volatile final against the Standard Chartered Bank's Oh Yes 1-0. At the same time Standard Group's Rogers Eshitemi emerged tournament top scorer with 10 goals, while Oh Yes captain Andrew Rukangu bagged the Most Valuable Player award.

Morris Ochieng Osir put the winners a head in the seventh minute with a rasping shot that blasted past Oh Yes custodian. The match was

Standard Group football team bags trip to Anfield

balanced in the first half of the five aside tournament final, but Osir managed to grab a free throw from Oliver Omondi, who stood strong in the winners’ goal mouth, to notch the all important goal of the final.

On their way to the finals the Standard Group drew 1-1 against Checkers

Mates, but went ahead to win 1-0 against Tirads and 4-1 against Thunder inthe group stage. Round of 16 was a tricky affair as the Standard Group came from a 1-0 trail to win 3-1 against Crocs.

Do or die battle ensued in the quarterfinals against the Nation Media group that proceeded to a penalty shootout, and the Standard Group managed to win the post match penalties 4 -3. They went ahead to win the semis against Chingwe 2-1 to sail to the coveted finals.

Team captain Erick Oyugi noted that it was a deserved win following all the challenges the winners went through to be crowned champions.

While savouring the victory Team Manager, Robin Toskin said the victory was as a result of hard work and commitment to practice.

"The team is going to resume training immediately at the University of Nairobi ground as they prepare to participate in a global tournament to be

held at Anfield ground," Toskin said. "Besides the contest, the team will also engage in various tours and high profile trainings during their stay in England,” Bank CEO Lamin Manjang noted. The tournament involved 32 teams, 25 from the bank's staff members and seven teams from the Kenyan mainstream media houses.

Standard Group torch bearers at the tournament were captain Erick Oyugi, Titus Muoki, Oliver Omondi, Morris Ochieng, Michael Odhiambo, Bismarck Mutai and Rodgers Eshitemi.

Pan African Life Insurance won the first edition held last year at the Impala grounds while Media Combined won the plate category. Besides, the tournament involved former Harambee Stars players who were engaged in exhibition matches.

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Kenya has two chances through which to qualify for the 2016 Rio Olympic Games.

Mwangi Muthee, Chairman of the Kenya Rugby Union (KRU) said the introduction of Rugby Sevens as an Olympic sport that will make its debut during Rio 2016 provides Kenya with a real chance of taking a team to the quadrennial games.

“A top position in the Rugby Sevens during the 2014 Youth Olympic Games scheduled for August in Nanjing or one of the top two places in Africa in 2015 is enough to propel Kenya to play at the Olympic Games,” Muthee said.

Muthee made the disclosures during the union’s elections in Nairobi where he also presided over the Union’s annual general meeting.

Kenya earned a place to represent Africa in Rugby Sevens at the 2014 Youth Olympic Games alongside South Africa owing to the stellar performances by their senior sides during last year’s tournaments.

“There is no room for mistakes. We have to get it right especially after Kenya’s sterling performance in the

Rugby Sevens team has two chances to qualify for Rio 2016

preceding years and an Olympic berth will be the jewel of our crown on our journey to the top,” Muthee said.

Kenya is currently l y i n g in 8th posit ion at the 2 0 1 4 H S B C S e v e n s W o r l d S e r i e s . T h e S e r i e s h a v e g a i n e d

in significance after the International Rugby Board (IRB) announced that the top four ranked nations will qualify directly for the Olympic Games in 2016.

The 16th edition of the Series will visit the same nine countries namely Australia, Dubai, South Africa, New Zealand, USA, Hong Kong, Japan, Scotland and England.

During the elections, Philip Jalang’o was elected Vice Chairman whereas Eddie Omondi was voted in as Hon. Secretary with Peninah Wahome, Oscar Ombui and Moses Ndale joining the board as directors.

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Bamburi Cement Limited has announced a sponsorship package for the Architectural Association of Kenya (AAK) golf tournament scheduled to start April 25, 2014 at the Karen Country Club.

The cement manufacturer has sponsored the tournament to the tune of 300,000 shillings. The amount will be used to cover the cost of the overall organizing including prizes.

“We have renewed our support to Architects’ Chapter golf, which has continued to nurture talent and contributed to the development of the sport over the years,” Steve Okeyo, the Commercial Director of Bamburi Cement said.

He said the championships have improved the standards of golf in the

Bamburi sponsor architects’ golf tournament

country and provided a competitive tournament platform for both professionals and amateurs. During the tour, professionals will undertake free coaching clinics for amateurs at the Karen Country Club to help them improve their game.

“Our objective is to continue to grow this tournament to a level where it will attract top regional and continental architects to Kenya to promote Kenya as a destination for golf tourism,” Emma Miloyo, the Chairperson of AAK Architects Chapter said.

In a clever move calculated at attracting the spoils from Kenya’s foot ball siblings, Kenya Netball Federation ‘elected’ Mildred Ayiemba Wanyama as the chairperson.Mama Wanyama, who is mother to Macdonald Mariga and Victor Mugubi was elected in February to chair the Federation that has been wobbling in brink of annihilation from Kenya’s sporting radar.

The first event on the calendar of the Kenya Netball Federation is usually the Chairman’s Cup, in which the chair is expected to bear the brunt of the event as a show of dedication to the game. Rose Ajusa, the immediate former chairperson of the federation insists that Mama Wanyama was

Netball rope in Mariga’s mother to attract funding

elected on the strength of her past association as a netball player. “There is no money in netball. We do not even have an office. Whatever we do at the federation we undertake on voluntary basis,” Ajusa lamented.

Ajusa, who is also the President of Confederation of African Netball Association (CANA) Zone Five, has appealed to people of goodwill to support netball like any other sport.

“Football, basketball, handball, volleyball and athletics all have grounds at Nyayo Stadium. Why not netball? Hiring fees for venues for the games is very exorbitant and the association cannot afford it,” Ajusa moaned.

She said those stadia that are being put up in the counties should have consideration for netball fields so that the game can spread to the regions.Ajusa sent a plea to Nairobi County Governor, Evans Kidero to consider supporting netball in the city to attract sponsors and for the game to grow.

She said Kidero has a resplendent record of supporting sports in the past and that unlike football, netball’s needs are very basic and the fraternity will accept whatever it is given.

Ajusa said she will concentrate her efforts in spreading the game to non-Anglophone speaking countries in Africa where it does not have a presence.

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The power of television has indeed changed the course of sports, forever. Television determines which sports one should watch and those one should just out rightly ignore. For every Olympic champion who carves their name, there is another who had to make do with 10 fleeting minutes of television fame.

In the same breath Kenya’s objective has always been to bring out the best of local sport, big or small. It was not until the country embarked on the task of fringe sport coverage that it was realized the immense

‘Lesser’ sports stand little chance of survival in Kenya

talent held therein. However, this reservoir remains untapped and over the years, Kenya’s successes at world events like the Olympics have largely been confined to track events. Kipchoge Keino, President of the National Olympic Committee-Kenya (NOC-K) has been an advocate for the diversification into other ‘lesser’ disciplines in order to increase Kenya’s medal haulage instead of relying only on track events.

“All medals are worth the same, whether athletics or bowling or archery. Time is now to branch out to

other sports as shooting, badminton, tennis handball and wrestling.”

The Olympic Games for example provide a bizarre amalgam of major and minor sports, of anonymous amateurs and world-famous professionals. The focus as ever is on such stars as track and field athletes, swimmers and gymnasts, their exploits scrutinized by packed crowds and a vast global television audience.

Advocates of the ‘lesser events’ argue they always provide more than their fair share of drama, passion, romance and controversy. Kenya has professional polo players in the paid ranks abroad. Volleyball is packed with constant drama and dynamic athleticism. Shooting is unlikely to become a big television attraction, although the Kenyan contingent to the UK Bisley was once in the top six nations in the world.

Nobody for instance bets against the Chinese table tennis team. During the 1996 Atlanta Olympics, they not only won all four gold medals in the men and women’s singles and doubles, but their second string players also claimed three of the silvers and one bronze.

And who will win at Tae Kwondo – a sport rooted in Korea’s ancient martial arts – if not the Koreans. They have after all been practicing for 2,000 years. Kenyans could learn a thing or two from them. There is need for Kenyan sports administrators to capitalize on the natural comparative advantage that Kenyans are born sportsmen and women. What is required is a long-term development program that leads to the production of quality athletes across the board.

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Go-Karting is a sport that is currently garnering pace in Kenya. The karting race is the closest one can get to the thrill of Formula One competition in the country. The increasing number of both the young and adults has resulted in the construction of international standards Go-Kart tracks in Nairobi, Mombasa and Nakuru to cope up with the increasing influx of devotees.

The tracks have become breeding grounds for Go-Kart drivers looking to make professional racing careers. Professional Formula One drivers such as David Coulthard, Michael Schumacher and Rubens Barrichelo are among some of those who started out in local karting circuits.

Sameer Nanji is a member of the Rift Valley Motor and Sport Club located in Nakuru, 159kms east of Nairobi where his father Mehboob Nanji is the chairman. Though he resides in Nairobi, Sameer travels to Nakuru whenever there is a race on the cards.

"I practice regularly and learn my karting lines well so that in the subsequent race, I can advance further up the grid," 11-year old Sameer said.

Art Ingells is credited as being the founder of Go-Karting. In 1956 he used a rope steering wheel and lawn mower engine to build a kart for his son.

Go-Karting in Kenya was introduced in 1977 with the opening of the GP Karting track in the outskirts of Nairobi. In 2004 Mombasa welcomed its track. The two are under different managements.

"Our karts have a remote controlled limiter so we can even allow kids as young as six to drive safely without injuring themselves," said Mehboob Nanji, chairman of the Rift Valley Motor and Sports Club. "Safety

Go-Kart fever invades Kenyais a major priority and meticulous precautions are undertaken by staff to ensure that races run safely."

Drivers are provided with jump suits and helmets while the cars are enforced with front end core bumpers. Racing rules and regulations as well as track etiquette are explained, especially to first timers, before basic training on driving the kart is given.

"For younger children, one of our technicians will seat beside the rider until he is sure the child can steer the kart properly on his own," Nanji said.

As one gets into their kart and sit down, the marshals provide one with last minute instructions to make sure you are compliant and ready to take the kart on the track. It has no clutch, just an acceleration and brake pedal; one accelerates with the right foot and brakes with the left.

On a typical racing day at the Nakuru track, the karters go through a qualifying round which determines the individual karters starting position in the line-up. There are four categories for the karting races; 50cc Class, 60cc Class, Rotax Junior (previously known as KF3), and KF2 Class. The 50cc and 60cc classes do 15 laps in each heat while the other two classes do 20 laps each.

All the racers have 10 minutes as practice time before the main heats and their best time is taken as their qualifying time. It requires concentration to maneouver the small vehicle across the track but also relaxing at the same time. The rush of adrenaline as one takes sharp bends at high speeds provides lots of excitement.

It is the closest one can come to a Lewis Hamilton or Michael Schumacher of the Formula One fame. It is not only a sport for experienced adult drivers but is enjoyed children as young as five years. Speed limits are usually controlled depending on the age and experience level of the racer, though most makes of the karts range between 50 and 60km/h.

The kart has a low centre of gravity, hence reducing and almost eliminating the chance of a roll over. The road surface is almost at eye level and more control of the steering wheel is required because the smooth tyres do not provide grip on the surface as treaded vehicle tyres.

On average the karts cost between 200,000 and 600,000 shillings. Both the Nairobi and Nakuru tracks open between 9am and 10pm whereas the Mombasa one opens at 4pm and closes at 10pm, owing to the coastal heat.

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In 2003, former NTV’s news presenter Sophie, who is currently with the BBC, was surprised that all the four African representatives of FIFA’s executive committee voted for Morocco instead of South Africa to host the 2010 World Cup.

Uganda’s Sunday Vision newspaper ran a screaming headline: South Africa! With a kicker that read: Black Africa welcomes 2010 World Cup.

Most of the people interviewed by the media in Nairobi after the vote in Zurich, said they were happy with the outcome because South Africa is nearer to Kenya than the other bidders Morocco, Egypt, Tunisia and Libya.

When FIFA president Sepp Blatter decided that Africa must host the 2010 World Cup, little did he know that the decision would divide Africa along racial and geographical lines.

Sahara divides football into African and Arabic

As a result, South Africa’s bid and hosting of the World Cup was seen as Black Africa’s triumph over the Arabs; south over north.

The excitement that greeted the outcome of events in Zurich was as joyous and tumultuous in South Africa as it was in Kenya and among the black Africans in Mauritania, despite the fact that Mauritania is nearer Morocco than South Africa. The same applied to the Senegalese, even though their president Abdul Wade had openly supported Morocco’s bid.

The unspoken truth behind Ikenye’s surprise and the celebrations in Kenya, Senegal or even the minority in Mauritania is that people in sub-Saharan Africa who are black would ordinarily identify themselves with other Africans of dark features instead of their fellow Africans north of the Sahara who are of Arabic descent.

This explains Ms. Ikenye’s surprise that Africa’s representatives (of dark features) on the FIFA executive committee voted for Morocco, and the Sunday Vision talked of Black Africa welcoming the 2010 World Cup.

It was not so much because of the proximity that many Kenyans welcomed South Africa’s successful bid to host the 2010 World Cup. After all, whether near

or not, very few could have afforded the journey down south for a football match.

The perception dominant in the north of the Sahara Desert is that people in that part of the continent are more Arabic than Africans. Reports about players in the north of the continent who play in the domestic leagues but have never been to Africa abound. There are north Africans who as “how is Africa”, in relation to the region south of the Sahara.

When the Arab Champions League was launched, all countries up there quickly identified with it. Of course it pays better and has a larger audience than the Africa Champions League; yet this didn’t endear them to the people south of the Sahara.

The Sahara Desert, the dividing line between Black and Arabic Africa is

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not a coincidence and is symbolic. There is more to this difference than just complexion and hair texture. That is why had Morocco won the bid, or even Libya, Tunisia and Egypt, most of the people in sub- Saharan Africa would have found it hard to identify with the 2010 World Cup as a truly African event. It wouldn’t have been a celebration of something truly and proudly African!

Yet the borders clearly show that all these countries; Morocco, Libya, Egypt and Tunisia are part of Africa only for convenience!

Morocco is ten kilometres from Spain’s south coast, and is not even a member of the African Union, and in a few years’ time Tunisia will qualify for special status accorded by the European Union.

Yet, Morocco capitalized on this proximity to exhort the UEFA members to get a block vote with the primordial stereotype that they could

play in Africa and cross over to south Europe to train and even sleep!

Morocco pulled out of the 6th All Africa Games in Zimbabwe in 1995 and they have been conspicuous by their absence from the Pan African games ever since – including the 7th and 8th in South Africa and Nigeria respectively.

Morocco does not compete in the All Africa Games where African countries field their U-23 teams in the football competitions but still believe they can express their African identity in the Africa Cup of Nations and the World Cup only.

Tunisia’s geographical position has strategically placed the country at a confluence of three civilisations – European, Arabic and African. They like to be identified with everything across the Atlantic and nothing down south.

They won their first Africa Cup of

Nations title in when they played host in 2003, but doubts will forever linger in the manner they finally did it. The events of that day when they beat Senegal in the quarter final, when even the local ball boys disappeared from the pitch after they had taken a controversial lead, were terrible and will hound them forever.

Twice in those finals, the Tunisian organisers played the wrong national anthems of teams from back Africa = Nigeria and Zimbabwe – as throngs of home supporters booed and jeered.

It could be dismissed as a genuine mistake, but you can bet tat such a mistake wouldn’t have happened to Egypt, Algeria or Morocco. A nation that knew seven months in advance about the identity of the teams that had qualified could not ask for excuses when they made such embarrassing mistakes like playing wrong national anthems of some of the participating teams, including a

semi-finalist.

And why, pray, did such mistakes if ever they were, have to happen in matches feturing the teams from sub-Saharan Africa; Nigeria and Zimbabwe against from Arabic side of Africa; Tunisia and Egypt?

It is because of such happenings that Ms. Ikenye and black Africa in particular will forever find it difficult to forgive Issa Hayatou (Cameroon), Amadou Dikaite (Mali) and Ishmael Bhamjee (Botswana) for voting for Morocco even if they had every right to do so. But Tunisia’s Slim Aloulou can be forgiven for obvious reasons.

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Whoever said that those who fail to plan, plan to fail must have had Kenya’s cricket authorities in mind. Quite obviously, no lover of Kenya’s cricket game needs the services of a star gazer to correctly predict that in a few short years, the country will be a cricket desert – its present international status notwithstanding.

Forget about the excitement generated by the outstanding performances of past years – including an unbelievable victory over the West Indies during the 1996 Cricket World Cup in Pune, India. Quite simply, Kenya cannot survive on past glory.

Kenya’s problem is a simple one: it does not have a meaningful national youth programme. There is nothing in place to continuously replace the veteran players who are retiring each

Kenyan cricket on freefall mode

year. On several occasions, Cricket Kenya Board has been called upon to recall retired players during World Cup qualifiers or the World Cup proper.

In 2003, the board recalled former national team captain, Aasif Karim out of retirement to play for the country during the 2003 World Cup that was co-hosted by South Africa, Zimbabwe and Kenya.

In 2013, veteran Steve Tikolo (42) was recalled from retirement to steer the team as player/coach during the Twenty20 World Cup qualifiers played in Dubai last October. Also recalled was another veteran Thomas Odoyo who is aged 36.

The inclusion of Tikolo in the team led to an embarrassing 11th position during the

qualifiers. Tikolo has before served as a player and captain of Kenyan team with a lot of dignity over the years. Unfortunately, as a coach, his skills are wanting.

He failed miserably as the Under-19 coach when Kenya did not qualify for the World Cup Under-19 in 2013

Nevertheless Tikolo’s inclusion alongside experienced Thomas Odoyo was a welcome move by the selectors under the circumstances for the qualifiers.

National coach Robin Brown from Zimbabwe and captain Collins Obuya resigned on the same day last December, leading to a lacuna that saw the elevation of Tikolo to the coveted position.

There is no active nationwide youth tournament from which the national selectors can draw from. In short, cricket-wise, Kenya is like a vehicle that has no reserve fuel, no service station anywhere in the vicinity and is steadily heading for empty.

Surprisingly, there have been loud proclamations for the entire world to hear that the country is ripe for Test status. Kenya, alongside The Netherlands and Canada recently lost their One Day International (ODI) status owing to their poor show at the ICC World Cup qualifier in New Zealand.

An ODI is a form of limited overs cricket, played between two teams with international status, in which each team faces a fixed number of overs, usually fifty.

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United Arab Emirates, Hong Kong of China and Papua New Guinea swiftly moved to replace them as new ODI members, joining Ireland, Afghanistan and Scotland for the next four years.

Instead of showing alarm at the depleting resources, in fact the speed is being accelerated. Someone will have to apply the brakes and radio for help.

Sharad Ghai, former chairman of Cricket Kenya says the board should stop feigning surprise that Kenya failed to qualify for the 2015 World Cup and also lost the One Day International status.

“It was an open secret that making it to next year’s global event would be more than an uphill task because the players had been put on a slippery slope through the years by continued blundering officials,” Ghai said.

“I was not surprised. It was easy to see a losing team. In fact I would have been surprised if Kenya qualified for the 2015 World Cup because preparations were poor.”

There is the need to shift the focus of cricket from Nairobi only because the city is not the only place where cricket talent lies.

The management of the game also ought to be professionalised because the era of volunteers is as gone as the last century. Imagine not doing these simple things and then wringing hands in agony when cricket goes under very soon.

Since Kenya lost to India at the 2003 Cricket World Cup in South Africa in the semis, the beam of hope has since faded and instead has been replaced by despondency and discontent. Someone watching soberly from the sidelines would die either laughing or of shock. Either way we would have killed him, and that’s wrong.

Misunderstood by many, Liverpool’s Daniel Sturidge is proving that success on the pitch is what drives him. Sturidge uses his smart phone to analyse videos of his goals on the way to games in his quest for self-improvement.

The 24 year-old arrived on Merseyside 18 months ago wounded, disillusioned and as suspicious of the football industry as many had become of him, his experience at Manchester City and Chelsea ensuring – to those on the outside – he appeared introverted and aloof.

Now the Liverpool striker is confronting the misconceptions and smears that caused distress and detachment, confirming what the majority of those who worked with him have long argued.

The overriding impression now is of a gifted but occasionally disenchanted kid hunting the ball, not the money, to prove he had the talent to become a Premier League superstar.

Sturidge: I don't chase money. I just want to win

“Maybe because I played for City and Chelsea, people think I have played for big clubs. I want to be successful, I am a winner and I’ve always wanted to win. But it’s not about sitting on the bench and watching from the sidelines and earning money and being content. It’s about playing, living your dream winning medals and leaving the pitch smiling,” Sturidge says.

“They said I am a money grabber yet City were the richest club in the world, so how was I chasing the money?”

The England striker already has an impressive collection; a Premier League, Champions’ Leage and FA Cup winners’ medal from Stamford Bridge.

“It’s not about looking back and saying I’ve won medals. I am still hungry,” he says. “We have not achieved anywhere near where I want to achieve, the rest of the players feel the same.”

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Egypt won the 37th edition of the African Junior Tennis Championship that concluded in Nairobi in March. The event involved players in the category of Boys and Girls 16 years and under; and Boys and Girls 14 years and under and drew participation from 26 countries out of the 30 that had earlier confirmed participation.

Four Egyptian players reached the finals of the tournament out of which two won individual titles. South Africa emerged second overall with Morocco taking third place. North Africa Zone won the Interzonal Trophy with Morocco taking the 14 and Under category whereas Egypt

Egypt win Africa Junior Tennis Championship

won in the 16 and Under category.

Egypt’s Youssef Hossam won the Boys 16 and Under category after he beat Richard Thongoana of South Africa 6-1; 5-7; 7-5. Tunisia’s Chiraz Bechir dismissed A. Lamis of Egypt 6-2; 6-2 in the Girls 16 and Under group.

The Egyptian pair of Youssef Hossam and Sherif Makhlouf beat Zimbabweans Tadiwa Chinamo and Julius Mutetwa 6-1; 2-0 to run away with the Boys Double 16 and Under.

Morocco’s Ghita Benhadi and Zainab Elhouri beat the South Africa pair of

Lee Barnard and Zani Barnard 4-6; 6-4; 10-5 to lift the Girls Double 16 and Under title.

Morocco’s Ismael Saadi beat countryman Soufiane Elmesbahi 6-3; 5-7; 6-1 in an all-Moroccan final to lift the Boys Single 14 and Under honours.

In the Girls category, Sada Nahimana of Burundi won over Hala Khaled of Egypt 6-1; 6-2 to become the only player from East Africa to win a title.

The pair of Eduardo Morris (Angola) and Nyathi Motlojoa (Lesotho) beat the South African duo of Philip Henning and Christian Worst 6-6; 3-6; 10-2 to lift the Boys Doubles 14 and Under honours.

In the Girls class

Morocco’s Y. Bengebara and Diae El Jardi beat Corin De Waal and Maja Gledic of South Africa 6-2; 3-6; 10-4 to emerge victorious.

Over 50 players and 30 coaches descended into Nairobi to compete for individual and country honours at the tournament which was organized by the Kenya Lawn Tennis Association (KLTA) in conjunction with the International Tennis Federation (ITF) and the Confederation of African Tennis (CAT) that ran between March 12 and March 22.

“For 37 years, ITF has walked the path of developing tennis in Africa under the Confederation of African Tennis. This is the first time an East African player has entered into the medal bracket,” Patrick Gichira CAT Vice President said during the closing ceremony at Nairobi Club.

“The tournament has brought to the fore the difference between players who have passed through a training center and those who have not.”

Luca Santili, ITF’s Head of Junior and Seniors Development congratulated Egypt on winning the tournament from previous winners South Africa.

“After 300 grueling matches, Egypt has won the nations trophy and they will represent Africa at the World Tennis Championships later in the year in the Czec Republic and in Mexico,” Santili said.

The countries that took part in the tournament are Algeria, Angola, Benin, Botswana, Burundi, Cameroon, Cote d’Ivoire, Egypt, Ethiopia, Gabon, Ghana, Kenya, Lesotho, Libya, and Madagascar.

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Others are Malawi, Mali, Mauritius, Morocco, Namibia, Niger, Nigeria, Rwanda, South Africa, Sudan, Tanzania, Togo, Tunisia, and Zimbabwe.

All the countries represented five zones; Central Africa, West Africa, Southern Africa, Northern Africa and East African Zones. No Kenyan player went past the second round, an occurrence that former KLTA’s Junior Development Officer Mike Kibala blamed on parents’ attitude where they enroll their children in many games.

“These children, if one goes to their schools, they will find that they are also the captains of swimming, football and a host of other disciplines instead of concentrating on one sport,’ Kibala lamented. “This is in sharp contrast to those players from the other who invest on only one sport and make the best out of it. Junior tennis in Kenya is dead.”

Subhash Modi, former Kenyan international cricket umpire is seen in the middle with his index figure raised between the wax statues of Indira Gandhi and Nelson Mandela at the Celebrity Wax Museum at Lonavala, Hill Station near Mumbai, India. The photo was taken during his recent visit to India where he was on holiday with his wife.

Subhash Modi took a two-month break from umpiring due to an injury he sustained on his right knee when a cricket ball hit him hard while he was umpiring a national Under-19 cricket tournament between Uganda and visiting ICC Cricket Academy which was organised by Cricket Kenya.

Modi back after two month recuperation

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Constructing a new football stadium for a club is a considerable sum, but not astronomical. The responsibility lies with the clubs and its powerbrokers. By owning their own new stadiums, clubs are able to keep all the profit generated on match days. More profitable corporate sponsorship deals will also be made possible from the leasing of private boxes and functions centres.

There are also great commercial benefits to be reaped. By owning their own stadiums, commercial retail shops, cafés and restaurants can also be established to ensure that in between match days the club’s stadium can remain as a revenue-generating asset.

One of the great pleasures of watching a Premier League or Bundesliga match is that more often than not the stadiums are full. Most of the stadia in Germany and England are also purpose built for football.

Sudanese clubs lead Africa in developing own stadiums

Few, if any, have running tracks around them that only ensure that fans are so far from the pitch that they can barely see the action on it. This is the case in most stadiums and therefore it is no wonder why most would rather sit at home and to watch their national game. The atmosphere

generated by the packed the crowds within their many impressive football stadia serves to create a product that is much more appealing and financially viable.

Sudan is one of the few African countries where football clubs are in possession of own stadia. Al Hilal Stadium, located in Omdurman, Sudan is home of Al Hilal Football Club.

The ground is a multiuse stadium, but is mostly used for football matches. Built on December 4, 1965, the stadium has a capacity of 35,000. At the opening celebration, Al Hilal played against the visiting Ghana national football team that ended in a 1-1 draw.

Not far from it is Al Merreikh Stadium, the arena of their bitter rivals Al Merreikh. Opened in 1968, the stadium has a capacity of 45000 and it went through renovation in 2007. Works on the stadium first started under the club's chairman Fahmy

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Suliman, who appointed a young engineer Abdelmonim Mustafa to structure a map to build a modern stadium.

The engineer, who is a known Merreikh supporter handed a piece of art inspired by Moscow Stadium in Russia and he did the whole job for free.

The stadium was opened over two stages. The first stage was opened in 1962 before the construction work was finished in order hosting some national celebrations; and that was by match between Al-Mourada and Al-Hilal, which was won by the former.

The second stage was completed two years later and the stadium was officially opened on November 30, 1964 to be the first club with own stadium in Africa.

In 2003, Al-Merreikh chairman Jamal Al-Wali and his board decided to upgrade the stadium and increase its capacity to the current 42,000 seats with costs of more than 10 million dollars (850 million shillings).

When opened in 2009 the stadium became one of the best in the African continent and is now the home stadium of Sudan national team.

Upgrades are still taking place and an Olympic swimming pool is currently under construction next to the stadium with a view of building a full sports city

In Europe a lot of teams own their stadiums like Barcelona (Camp Nou); Valencia (Mestalla); AC Milan (San Siro); Juventus (Juventus Stadium); Real Madrid (Santiago Bernabeu); Manchester United (Old Trafford); Arsenal (Emirates) and many others.

In Africa, most of the teams don't own a stadium. In Egypt, Al Ahly, the greatest team in Africa plays their official matches at Cairo International Stadium, which is a state-owned facility and have to rent it.

Muthaiga to host KPA Golf eventEvery company wants to hold a golf day. The golf clubs love it, the promotional companies think it's great but really the question needs to be asked – why run one? Too many companies run a golf day for the wrong reason. A few come to mind: "Our competitors have one"; "We have always had one"; "We need to spend our marketing money on something".

Unfortunately the decision to hold a golf day should not be based solely on these reasons. Rather, the potential benefits of hosting a corporate golf day should be viewed in the following way:

• Golf is a most popular corporate sport.

• A well organised golf day is a 10 hour sales call. Compare this to the average 20 minute appointment with an agitated client and you will begin to see that a golf day can do wonders for your client relationships.

• Few other sports can lure senior executives from their heavy workloads and other commitments.

A well organised, memorable golf day is a relatively inexpensive but effective way for your company to:

• Distinguish your company from your competition

• Build relationships with potential clients

• Reinforce relationships with existing clients

• Thank clients for their valued custom

Additionally and almost as importantly,

a golf day provides the smart golf day organiser the chance to pair two attendees up with each other for the benefit of each other’s cause. Your external accountant playing with one of your growing accountant who is experiencing problems with their existing accounting function might provide the perfect ingredients for a developing relationship.

Superficially, a degree of loyalty is promoted with your clients and they realise that you are thinking about their cause and not just selling to them. Relationships are one of the keys to successful business growth. A well organised corporate golf day can be an ideal way to build these relationships.

Kenya Ports Authority has over the years been sponsoring Golf tournaments for its stakeholders in towns where they have a strong presence notably Mombasa, Nairobi and Kisumu.

This initiative has proved to be an invaluable platform for engaging stakeholders, most of whom are executives and captains in their own right, in relaxed social environment on service delivery in relation to performance.

The sponsorships have had an impact on activating leverage to achieve higher engagement with clientele, translating into a healthy return on investment and satisfied clients.

The KPA Golf Day tournament, sponsored at a cost of three million shillings, will take place on April 26, 2014, with the first tee off at 7.00 a.m and the last 2.00 p.m.

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Graceful serves, scintillating ricochets, clever retorts, balance power and strength tinged with aura professionalism are in abundance on eight-year old Shakira Varese.

At the close of the practice session, frills, thrills and spills of excitement and superb sportsmanship had gushed out, giving junior tennis a refreshing lease of identity and unravelling to the world the rare dazzle of upcoming wonder.

“I am doing all that is humanly possible to enable Shakira realise her dream of one day being a champion,” Leo Varese told Sports Monthly about the commitments towards her daughter at the JD Tennis Academy.

“At the moment it is all about exposure, not about winning. After the experience, everything will fit perfectly in place and winning will come naturally.”

At eight years, Shakira has no worthy opponent of her age and has to contend with playing against older

Shakira counts on father to realise dream

players to make up for the deficit. Her father pledges to enter her at all the Kenya Lawn Tennis A s s o c i a t i o n ( K L T A ) tournaments.

“ S h a k i r a entered her first Under-10 t o u r n a m e n t in February this year and won all games in her class where she

beat much older girls.

In mid March, she came second in her age group during the Elgon Tournament held at Nairobi Gymkhana in the Under-10 category,” Leo explained.

Shakira started playing tennis at the Academy aged three and a half years in the Tiny Tots class under the legendary Jim Davies who opened the facility in 1987.

Last January, Shakira bagged the title of “Most promising player” during the annual Coca Cola Junior tournament where she was also the youngest entrant.

The Year 3 pupil at Braeside School in Lavington, practices three times a week under the tutelage of coaches Jaglib Barakat and Ezekiel Tarus.

“Tennis is not a cheap sport if one factors all the expenses it entails. Shakira’s practice sessions cost me on average 18,000 shillings monthly.”

Born in Uruguay in South America, 43 years ago, Leo has lived in Kenya since early 1980s and is a Kenyan citizen.

Schooled at Brookhouse School and the International School of Kenya (ISK), Leo and his younger brother David run a transport company of a fleet of cars for hire.

He is fluent in English, Spanish and Swahili, whereas Shakira and son Adriano (5) only pick up on their Spanish whenever their grandmother comes visiting from Uruguay.

“My father died some time back and my mother remained in Uruguay to take care of the family business. She will be making her yearly visit to Kenya soon.”

Leo is also two-time Kenya National Rally Champion in the two wheel drive class – feats he achieved in 2008 and 2010.

He won the second round KCB rally series; Machakos Rally in March this year with co-driver Kigo Kareithi and hopes to do all races this year.

“JD Academy is our second home because here is where we spend most of our time. Shakira even forgoes celebrating her birthday when it falls on a practice day.”

Leo advises parents to let their children concentrate on one discipline so that they do not lose focus.

He says that was the undoing of Kenyan players during the recently-concluded Africa Junior Championships that ended in Nairobi and in which Kenya performed poorly.

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Sadili Africa Talent Training Academy joined forces with the US Embassy and Learning and Testing Service (LTS) East Africa in March to provide talented Kenyan students with a chance to learn more about studying abroad during the launch of the Africa Talent Search.

The Africa Talent Search is a programme initiated by Sadili Africa Talent Training Academy (SATTA) that will be sponsored and endorsed by American universities, and sets out to search for sporting talent across Africa as well as artistic creativity in music and art.

SATTA is a high performance programme that is about increasing the chances of producing winning athletes in the region who would be able to play either in the international arena or college teams through scholarship. Once potential applicants have been discovered, they will be among the select few to be given a

Sadili launch Africa Talent Search 2014

one in a million opportunity to have their talent nurtured by SATTA, which is now based at Sadili Oval Sports Academy in Langata.

More than 130 students from around Nairobi attended the event Starehe Girls, Buru Buru Girls and Malezi School. The speakers included Morris Ochieng (also known by his stage name Mdomo Baggy) who gave an insight fu l , c o m e d i c talk about the journey to his c u r r e n t career and inspired the s t u d e n t s by helping t h e m understand t h e i r potential.

T h e r e

was an informative talk by Bobby Abilla of LTS who talked about common entrance examinations into universities in America and also touched on his own personal journey. Dr. Eugene Genga gave an amazing talk about the highs and lows he encountered as he pursued his passion for sports while still managing to balance Sports and education.

Patrick Kabuki gave an informative, engaging funny talk on the SATTA music department. The last talk was presented as a vote of thanks by Dr. Elizabeth Odera who thanked the two organisers and alumni of the SATTA Programme, Zachary Okong'o (recently graduated) and Francis Okong'o Kinyanjui (currently at the African Leadership Academy in South Africa).

As always, Dr. Odera moved the crowd with her powerful articulation and hilarious references. It was a beautifully organized day that gave all the students who attended insight on how to apply to universities, inspiration to pursue their talent while at the same time balancing their education and information of SATTA.

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No incidents of hooliganism have been reported since the Kenyan Premier League (KPL) kicked off, the confederacy’s CEO has said.

Jack Oguda said all indications are that hooliganism might be a thing of the past following recent drive to address the concern.

“Since the 2014 league started on February 15, there hasn’t been any incident of hooliganism reported and we hope it will remain that way,” Oguda said during the draw of the Top 8 Knock Out tournament.

Hooliganism has been a thorn in the flesh of the KPL in the past especially from reactionary supporters of reigning champions Gor Mahia who cannot fathom their team losing. The menace has already caused the team sponsorship after milk company, Tuzo, failed to renew

Oguda says hooliganism on the decline

financial backing which stood at 29.5 million shillings last season.

The loutish behavior has been a source of major concern which compelled the club’s fans to convene a meeting in Nairobi in February this year where they vowed to weed out the threat.

The fans gave their word that they will do everything it takes to bring the danger to a stop even if means arresting the hoodlums.

The ugly face of hooliganism has so much haunted the good fortunes of Gor Mahia to an extent that it has occasioned league matches to be cancelled and hefty fines imposed on the club. Gor Mahia lost their away league match 0-2 to premier league debutants, Top Fry in Nakuru without any incident reported after the encounter, something that would not

have happened in the past and an occurrence club and national officials as citing as an indication of changed times.

Ambrose Rachier, Gor Mahia chairman said the club’s fans have started to take defeat in their stride.

“A good sportsman must also accept to be defeated. There is nobody who enters a competition to lose, therefore winners have a right to their victory,” Rachier said.

The KPL Top 8 Knockout tournament is contested by the top eight teams of the previous season and is in its fifth edition. This year’s teams are Gor Mahia, AFC Leopards, Sofa Paka, KCB, Tusker, Bandari, Thika United and Ulinzi Stars.

The previous winners of the championship are SofaPaka (2010),

Ulinzi (2011), Gor Mahia (2012) and Tusker (2013).

Winners of the tournament receive 1,000,000 shillings at the end of the competition that begins at the quarter-finals stage where teams play each other once.

“The aim of this year’s tournament is to raise money for the Under-19 national tournament after it became a challenge trying to secure sponsorship for the youth league,” the KPL chief said.

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Known as the “Stopper” to her adoring boxing fans, Benedetta Kaloki is a woman on a mission to make a difference in Kenyan sports.With two companies to her name, Kaloki is a professional boxer who started Sportsworth Promotions and Bena Sportsworth Foundation as a way to seek out and nurture talent.

Kaloki’s personal sporting achievements are as astonishing as she is a rare breed. She has fought for a world boxing title; was a member of the first ever Kenyan women’s kabaddi team to the World Cup and is also the only female member of wushu kung fu Kenyan team. Kabaddi is an Indian form of wrestling where two teams occupy opposite halves of a small field and take turns sending a “raider” into the other half to win points by tackling members of the opposing team.

She is also a boxing promoter; the African representative to Global Boxing Union; and the regional representative to the International

Kaloki has eyes firmly fixed on the prize

Freestyle Football Association.

Kaloki's Sportsworth Promotions has hosted some of Kenya's most successful boxing events and she is credited with pioneering Muay Thai boxing competitions in Kenya.Muay Thai is a combat sport from the muay marital arts of Thailand that uses stand-up striking along with various cinching techniques and is characterized by the combined use of fists, elbows, knees, shins and feet.

Last March, Kaloki in cooperation with the World Kick Boxing Federation, organised title bouts in Nairobi that featured three African professional champions. Beside this event, WKB Africa had a continental meeting that was also attended by World Director Fritz Exenberger who was invited as a guest.

Kaloki's passion for sports started early in life and at the age of 17, she was already a member of the Kenyan karate team.

‘I joined boxing as an amateur in 2008 after getting bored with karate which lacked the thrills I had anticipated,” Kaloki said. She had earlier joined karate in 1999 and holds a black belt.

“In karate, one is not allowed to hit an opponent during competition, but should pull back the punch or kick before it makes body contact with the challenger. On the few occasions that my punches landed on a contestant, albeit accidentally, the consequences were not pleasant,” Kaloki said.

“I wanted more. I lost the drive. It was at this point that I made up my mind to join a sport where I would put my strength to good use.”

However, before switching to boxing, Kaloki did national duty for the country in both karate and kick boxing during which she was part of the Kenyan team to the East and Central Africa Karate Championship in 2002 that was held in Uganda.

In 2006, she was in the kick boxing team for yet another tournament in Uganda.Kaloki believes sports can change lives of individuals for the better. After seeing many of her peers drop out of school due to drugs, and early pregnancies, Kaloki stayed focused on sports and education that saw her eventually complete a degree in sports science in the 2005.

“My way of giving back to society was by launching the foundation in 2011, and since then we have hosted several football events around the country and we also have a program for girls called Team Lioness where young girls are taught self defense and the value of abstinence,” Kaloki said.

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A study examining Scottish coaches’ perspectives on anti-doping has highlighted the influence a coach can have on an athlete’s views. The WADA-commissioned study was carried out by the University of Stirling and included interviews by coaching and anti-doping experts.

It found that the country’s anti-doping record is heavily linked to coaches’ anti-doping attitudes and also suggested that the coach’s role is not being maximized as it should.

“We found there was a strong stance from coaches towards anti-doping and their ethos is based on athletes achieving success through hard work and not through taking any shortcuts,” explained Dr Justine Allen, lead author of the study.

“In that respect, the foundations are there, but many coaches said they lacked knowledge around anti-doping and for some it was a low priority due to the established anti-doping culture and few incidents in their sport."

Coaches crucial to anti-doping attitudes amongst athletes

“There are very good examples of anti-doping best practice and integrated programmes in some governing bodies, but this tend to be in sports with a history of doping issues internationally when it should be across the board. There is a need to establish clear roles and responsibilities within each governing body of sport in relation to anti-doping.

WADA President Sir Craig Reedie said the study has been insightful in highlighting the importance of anti-doping policies, and the role coaches and the athlete entourage may play in influencing athletes.

“Whilst the study offers just a snapshot from one country, it certainly validates the view that WADA has towards athlete support personnel and the fact that those who surround the athlete, including coaches, can strongly influence an athlete’s decision-making. This influence is an area that has been reflected by WADA in the revised World Anti-Doping

Code, which will take effect from January 1, 2015.”

He said the results of the study show that education of athletes and their support p e r s o n n e l is a crucial part of any a n t i - d o p i n g program.

“At WADA, we provide many r e s o u r c e s aimed at p r o v i d i n g a n t i - d o p i n g

information to athletes, coaches and other stakeholders such as teachers and physicians so that those involved can make the right decisions.”

The study recommended developing further case study examples on how and when to engage athletes and coaches in anti-doping conversations and experiences, and integrating anti-doping information into wider topics such as optimising performance preparation and recovery where discussion might include nutrition and supplement use.

The findings, however, also discovered the coaches’ limitations. Dr. Allen said he did not think the coaches can be absolved of responsibility towards anti-doping.

“All of the coaches we interviewed agreed with that, but while the public might think it should be the coaches’ responsibility, the coaches we spoke to were clear they don’t have full control over what the athletes do.”

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The first Kenyan to ever attempt to climb the world’s tallest peak will attempt the feat in May. Steve Obbayi will set out from Nairobi March 24 to become the first Kenyan to climb Mount Everest (8,858meters) and the third black African to take a stab at the feat.

“The ultimate goal in this expedition is to show that one can chase and realise their dream without giving up,” Obbayi said. “It is no doubt going to be a challenge. Whatever you go for has some level of risk. The task is about living your dream and delivering what you believe in your heart.”

Obbayi (39) will be accompanied in the expedition by Expedition Everest founder, Toby Storie-Pugh. “Mount Everest continues to maintain its allure and challenge to get to the top,” Storie-Pugh,38, said. “Obbayi was

First Kenyan climber to attempt Mount Everest feat in May

short-listed from over 300 applicants because he stood out the strongest after he displayed he has the heart of a lion.

Obbayi and Pugh have already summited Mount Kenya, the tallest peak in the country at 5,199 meters and have also conquered Mount Kilimanjaro (5,895 meters). The team will arrive at Everest Base camp on April 9 and have five weeks to acclimatise and will ascend the mountain through the South Col route.

An entrepreneur based in Nairobi, Obbayi began

climbing in 1992 for the physical and mental challenges. Seeking a career challenge as well, he taught himself how to write software by reverse engineering computer games and launched his web development firm in Nairobi in 2004, which he later expanded into a business intelligence software company in 2009.

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Last

Wor

dAs Kenyan cricket is dead and buried, world cricket has moved on. The Associate countries have all improved and grown their cricket over the years. In the late 90’s Kenya and Bangladesh was the envy of Associate countries.

Most Associate countries took the challenge and have done their cricket proud, with the likes of Afghanistan, Ireland, Netherlands, UAE, among others.

Some of these teams are and will participate in the World Cup Under-19, World Cup 20/20 and the World Cup 2015 in Australia.

Kenya on the other hand, with egoistic leadership, especially in the last 10 years has brought its cricket to its knees and the leaders still walk with pride. Shame indeed!!

The Kenyans have failed miserably and will be spectators, watching all the teams on television. The Kenya Under -19 coach Steve Tikolo failed to qualify for Under-19 World Cup and the World Cup qualifier for 2015.

Robin Brown from Zimbabwe, who stepped in after Mike Hesson left for New Zealand resigned before the World Cup qualifier. CEOs and captains in Kenyan cricket change faster than seasonal changes in the country.

It is either non-competence or the inability of the administrators to recruit competent or inspiring coach. Is anything in the Kenyan cricket system working?

The new CEO of Cricket Kenya Olivier Kobus has been in office for the last five months. A former cricketer, coach, with vast experience in cricket having played in South Africa, Holland and England, he has much to offer.

Kobus has a huge task ahead to deal with the politics of the administration, prepare a meaningful development and inspire the people around him to start a new journey/baby for Kenyan cricket.

Will the CK administration allow him to function or give him an opportunity to share his experience? Will he succeed? Time will tell!! Reliable sources have revealed that the former CEO Barbra Konya was frustrated by the CK board to the point of resigning.

During the poor preparation of the national cricket team for the important 20/20 qualifiers and the qualifier for World Cup 2015, Kobus managed to get Gary Kristen (pro bono services) in December 2013 for three days. Gary has been a very successful South Africa player.

Gary Kristen has been a very successful coach with the Indian national team, taking them to number one position in the test arena and winning the prestigious World Cup in 2011 when India beat Sri Lanka in the finals. Currently he is a coach with an IPL team.

Gary Kristen is the elder brother of Andy Kristen. Andy had helped the Kenyan team with Sandip Patil in the 2003 World Cup. Andy unfortunately had a terrible experience with the team and the administration when he came back to coaching the Kenya team sometime around 2008.

KENYAN CRICKET DEAD!Mudasar Nazar, the former Pakistan captain also assisted the team in December 2013. It was a case of too late as no meaningful results came out of it.

Recently I was invited to Mombasa Sports Club to speak to young cricketers who are being trained and guided by cricket lovers, Vivek Mehta and Isaak Kana. I was impressed with the turn out. Such youngsters need to be encouraged in every cricket club and estates, if there is any hope of producing cricketers.

Regular tournaments need to be organized among the youngsters provincially. Where are the days of the competitive national league, or the annual exciting matches between Mombasa and Nairobi?

Unconfirmed reports are in the grapevine that two senior officials of CCA have resigned and a few resignations may be lined up in CK. The national body and provincial bodies have both let the cricketing fraternity down. The titanic created in the 90’s has sunk. Please, the leadership at CK and provincial bodies need to wake up and take stock of their continued failures.

This game should not be owned or run by “egoistic individuals”. This game was there before us, and will continue after us. Be honourable and step down! History will judge you harshly. Does anyone care?? All the cricket stakeholders need to take responsibility and jolt the system, similar to the Arab Spring! The current situation and the way it is going, cricket will remain dead!!

In the meantime, my family has founded a foundation called Safinaz Foundation in honour of my parents Nargis Karim and the late Yusuf Karim and my wife – Nazneen’s parents; late Sherali and late Kulsoom Kassam.

The foundation is expected to be launched to coincide with the launch of the documentary and the coffee table book. The purpose of the foundation among other things is to promote sports in Kenya, education and social needs of all walks of life I Kenya.

35


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