Hungary based Bianchi to lead Team Kenya in next week's Africa show in Mombasa

Maria Bianchi and coach Ahmed Mohammed /HANDOUT

Hungary-based Maria Bianchi will lead a formidable 13-man Kenyan team to the Africa Senior Open Water Swimming Championship slated for October 21-23 in Mombasa.

Team Kenya will be up against nine countries in the three-day event, where swimmers compete against each other in a test of endurance, with the participants covering 3km and 5 km races, respectively.

Bianchi represented the country in the Open Water Championship in Singapore in July alongside Victoria Okumu, Serah Mawaira and Samir Bachelani, among others.

She is hoping to leverage the experience gained from that event as Kenya seeks to lay down a marker at the championship.

Team Kenya will be up against powerhouses South Africa, Egypt, Angola, Morocco, Nigeria, Botswana, Senegal, Tanzania, and Morocco.

Kenya Aquatics (KA) executive member, Heinze Kahindo, said the teams are expected to arrive in the country at the end of the week and that the preparations are currently in top gear.

“This is a big championship for not only us but also Africa. This is still a very new concept in the swimming fraternity, and for us to host it is a big statement following the years of wrangles, bad governance and inactivity."

Kahindo said the 13 swimmers have had a robust training programme and were relishing the battle to compete against the best on the continent. “We have had the experience of taking part in the World Championship, and the swimmers have been training in Nairobi. Starting this week, they will go to Mombasa to finalise their preparations," he said.

Kahindo said that, as a federation, they want to develop all aspects of swimming, including water polo and others, to give swimmers an opportunity.

“We have done fairly well with the conventional swimming, but we need to broaden our horizon in other disciplines like water polo, open water and synchronised swimming in the future to expose our swimmers to them from a young age."

Squad: Samir Bachelani, Victoria Okumu, Ali Nadi, Serah Mawira, Pendo Anampiu, Maria Bianchi, Swaleh Taib, Hamza Mohammed, Iqbal Bayusuf, Ariel Joseph, Kayza Iman, Walid Halid and Andrea Danida.

Africa Senior Open Water Swimming Championship 2025

The Africa Senior Open Water Swimming Championship 2025 is set to bring together elite swimmers from across the continent to compete in one of the most demanding aquatic disciplines.

The championship, which will feature races in various long-distance categories, aims to showcase endurance, technique, and resilience in open water conditions.

Participants are expected from other African nations, each fielding their best swimmers to battle for continental glory and qualification points for upcoming global competitions.