The Arab nation known for business and other exploits except sports has defied every possibility to stage a historic classic tournament many can only dream of. The class, opulence, finesse, wonders of technology and magnificent facilities just gives glimpse of what strategic nations and people can achieve, if they selflessly pursue excellence.
Never mind the fact that the 2022 Qatar World Cup finals are played in uncharacteristic season. To cap it all, they never succumbed to bullies who in unorthodox ways nearly imported the moral depravity deemed sacrilege in the deeply religious Gulf and Arab nations.
Back home, the lifting of FKF suspension by global football governing body FIFA couldn’t have come at a better time. Kenyan football under successive regimes has suffered tremendous setbacks and blows from which it will take some extraordinary ordinary efforts to resuscitate it.
The onus now is for Sports CS Ababu Namwamba to ensure football is professionally run and fans throng stadia to reminiscent of the good old days.
It would be imperative for CS Ababu to compel all registered football clubs playing in super and Premier League to develop sound structures for longevity, sustainability and act as a feeder programme for talents. This can be the only way to attract funds from the Sports Fund and other institutions.
Federations that have previously been run by entitled individuals must come to an end. It is unfathomable that certain federations have not conducted elections while for ages, the same faces continue to sit at the helm as talents rot away due to irresponsible and abhorrent leadership.
It is a pity that the Kenya Rugby Union is wallowing in abject want to an extent players are begging for help from the public and well-wishers after depleting their personal savings. KRU had one of the most exciting and hottest property in Kenya 7s. It was the envy of the world and I’m aghast to see the once glittering brand totter to bankruptcy and into abyss. We refuse to let it die.
Athletics Kenya, which has produced most polished and accomplished global brand ambassadors for Kenya, has been on the eye of the storm over mass doping claims. This poses a grave danger to our esteemed standing as producers of indomitable world-beaters in middle and long distance races.
The federation must for all intents and purposes classify rogue agencies as existential danger to our all-conquering athletes. Their registration, holding them accountable and fiercely enforcing the legislation to weed out the unscrupulous ones must begin in earnest.
AK president Jack Tuwei must look into the important place Kenya Amateur Athletics Association K3A held in identifying, nurturing and integrating budding athletes. These structures are the mainstay of any sports.
A lesson from the Kiptoyot football tournament entering into its third edition this year is that Kenya is brimming with incredibly huge talents in all disciplines. The unbridled talents out there from gifted lads are screaming that anyone willing can tap spruce them up into superstars, serial winners and major champions.
Kenya has the capability to send a contingent of patriots to challenge for top honors in world championships, Olympics, continental tourneys, Commonwealth games and elite leagues across the world. It’s thus about time we take our sports to the golden era of cricket, boxing, swimming, volleyball, motor racing and rugby .
I reminisce with astounding nostalgia how Kenya’s cricket team would take on world giants, including Australia, India, Pakistan, West Indies and England at the global stage.
The effervescent Malkia Strikers would keep me on the edge of my seat. Basketball was such a hit in high school and university. Chiseled rugby players would always show opponents clean pair of heels as they sprint to score a try. Living legend and greatest marathoner of all times [Eliud Kipchoge] has shown us how it’s done and nothing is impossible.
As the captain of Team Bunge FC, the salient lesson picked from East Africa Legislative Assembly games in Juba, South Sudan, is that sports promotes healthy living and is a fulcrum of unity in the East African Community.
Kericho Senator Aaron Cheruiyot is the Majority leader in the Senate
