National women’s volleyball team player Edith Wisa is the sports personality of the month of October.
The Kenya Prisons middle blocker becomes the fourth recipient of the StarTimes sponsored monthly award.
Wisa was outstanding during the World Championship qualifier in Cameroon in October, where the ‘Malkia Strikers’ qualified for the next year event alongside the eventual winners Cameroon.
The 24-year-old and a student of Bachelor of Commerce at the Mt Kenya University was named the best blocker in Africa and her exploits were evident during the group stage match against Senegal.
The West Africans were leading 23-18 and destined to bag the third set but Wisa showed character with her sure blocks to stop red hot Senegalese Fatou Diock
and in the the end, Kenya won 28-26. Wisa deservedly started in all the matches from the group stage to the final clash against Cameroon.
Wisa shook off competition from team-mate and Kenya team skipper Mercy Moim, KPA’s women’s basketball team guard Natalie Akinyi and Joyceline Jepkosgei as well as the Kabras Sugar duo of Brian Tanga and Philip Wokorach.
Moim was voted best attacker at Africa Nations Championships while Akinyi was named the MVP and best point guard as KPA successfully defended the FIBA Zone V title in Kampala. Jepkosgei broke her sixth world record in 2017 by breaking the women’s half marathon world record after clocking 1 hour 4 minutes 51 seconds in Valencia, Spain with Tanga and Wokorach helped the team win their maiden national rugby sevens series circuit title.
“I am truly honoured to win this award and thank my coaches and teammates for helping me in improving my game. I am surprised to be the winner as I did not ever expect to be awarded. This is a good motivator as we prepare for the World Championship, thank you StarTimes
and SJAK for standing with sportsmen and women in Kenya,” said the emotional soft spoken Wisa. Wisa’s other achievements include best blocker during the club championship in Tunisia early this year and is also the current KVF league best blocker.
“I want to congratulate Wisa for having been picked as Kenya’s best sports personality for the month of October. She has been outstanding in her exploits and for sure she deserves this special recognition. As a brand, StarTimes will endeavour to encourage our sportsmen and women through these monthly awards as a way of recognizing their dedicated efforts on the field,” noted StarTimes director of marketing and PR
Japhet Akhulia. The middle blocker walked away with a trophy, a 42-inch StarTimes digital TV set and Sh100,000. Wisa is the fourth recipient of the monthly award after Simon Cherono, Hellen Obiri and Janet Okello.