Muhammad Ali, truly Greatest of All Time

Circa 1980: Unease is building across the globe while countries are busy preparing for the Summer Olympics to be held in Moscow. The then Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) invasion of Afghanistan a year earlier in 1979, has US engaging its top foreign officials in diplomacy to object to the USSR's actions. It is decided  that the Carter administration would procure the services of its biggest sports icon Muhammad Ali to convince African countries to boycott the Olympic Games.
The then Pres.Jimmy Carter hurriedly cobbled up an African Tour for Ali to visit 5 African states including Liberia, Nigeria, Senegal, Tanzania and Kenya. His reception in 2 of the states - Tanzania and Nigeria was lukewarm given the countries were quietly supporting socialist ideals and did not take Carter's shuttle sports diplomacy kindly. Tanzania's Julius Nyerere refused to meet Muhammad Ali and almost ruined the February trip to Africa. Nigeria's Shagari also gave a cold shoulder to his sojourn.

Muhammad Ali and Pres. Moi at State House, Nairobi, Feb 1980 - Image courtesy of Associated Press

For Kenya, it was the first and only time they came close to seeing the 'Greatest of All Time' - Muhammad Ali. Then Pres. Moi and his emerging role in the Cold War turf wars in Africa, restored some decency and surety by supporting the US boycott.
The Kenyan trip gave the US some impetus and won them an ally when Kenya's athletes eventually boycotted the Games in Moscow later in 1980. The 3-day trip to Kenya included a visit to the Starehe Boys Centre, as well as an exhibition fight with Kenya's Muhammad Abdallah Kent. Though the African trip did not score a major victory for Ali, it still endeared him to his adoring fans across Africa and other developing countries.
Later that year, he would lose his title to Larry Holmes in his second last year before retiring in 1981.

Humble Beginnings
Ali's walk into the ring started in Louisville, Kentucky where it is rumoured to have found his bicycle stolen. In his anger, he swore to thump the thief and a cop found him and enrolled him to a local boxing gym. Cassius Marcellus Clay Jr as he was christened by his parents quickly learnt his art and became an amateur boxer winning the Golden Gloves (6 in Kentucky and 2 National) awards. This led to his selection into the US boxing team for the 1960 Rome Olympics Games, winning light-heavyweight gold medal.
For this young boxer who's unorthodox style of dancing around the ring and speed previously unknown of boxers his weight, he indeed announced his arrival onto the scene. His style would have a spice of his bounce as he sought to tire his opponent and deliver his punches with precision much to the delight of the crowds. He often called out his opponents in the ring, driving them mad and in essence making them lose their minds before delivering the coup de grace. Indeed his was more like a calling to change the way boxing was viewed and seen then.


Ali and The Olympics 
1960s were a defining era for Clay. Winning the gold medal in Rome was among them. A story is told of how he became angry after being denied service at all-White restaurant resulting in him throwing away his gold medal in the Ohio River. He turned pro in October 1960 amassing an impressive 19-0 fight ( 15 of these being TKOs). In 1964 in Miami, he got his chance to fight the reigning world champion Sonny Liston scoring one of the biggest upsets in the sport.

In the same decade, he joined the Nation of Islam thanks to the influence of  Malcolm X and its founder, Elijah Muhammad appropriately giving him the name Muhammad Ali. Having being subjected to the

Ali & Malcolm X's family- Image Archives

segregation and oppressive forms of social living in some of the States had made him become conscious of his place in society and his role in coming up and speaking out of these social injustices.

Later that decade in 1967, Ali was forced to retire from the sport thanks to conviction of a federal court which stripped him of the heavyweight titles (WBA, WBC among others). This was after he refused to enlist in the US Army to join the forces in Vietnam.

Moscow 1980 (again):Ali's entanglement with the Olympics movement would come again in 1980 when the US Government sought to enlist his services to engage in shuttle diplomacy among African states. His statement on the USSR (now largely Russia)'s invasion of Afghanistan buttressed his role. (In Ali’s estimation of the invastion);

... the Soviets were: like a bad child who you’ve told to stay out of the kitchen, stay out of the cookie jar and if you threaten to strike him, he’ll see that you’re not really serious and tomorrow he’ll go take another cookie, or he may break the jar. The Russians have made a move that we should do something about. So we got to do something to show them that we’re serious and if we go play ball with them, go boxing with them, run track or swim with them it just don’t seem that we’re so serious

Atlanta 1996: The US IOC got the chance to host the Olympic Games in consecutive decades in Atlanta. Come Summer in ATL, and the Games organisers kept everyone guessing who would light up the Olympic Torch ( lit at the start of every Games and put off on the last day of the same). And when the spotlight was shone in the night of 19th July,1996 in Atlanta. It is often noted as one of the Games enduring moments and one of the Olympics of triumph over physical challenges. This ceremony would also mark the last of the major public appearance of the legend.
(He was also re-awarded his 1960 gold medal having lost his original medal)

Ali at Atlanta '96 - Image courtesy of www.olympics.org

Africa and Ali
Having been a vocal supporter of social injustices, it would only be a matter of time before he connected with the 'motherland'. Well, that may not be entirely true...his African journey came around thanks to the genius of one Don King. Starting out in his role as boxing promoter, Don King had been tasked with securing a venue and money for the fight dubbed 'Rumble in the Jungle'. The bout also coincided with a music concert organised by Jerry Masucci. As if by fate, the two events were quickly picked by Zaire (now Democratic Republic of Congo)'s Pres. Mobutu Sese Seko who paid for hosting the fight to shine a spotlight on the state at the River Congo. The music concert dubbed Zaire '74 featured among others, Miriam Makeba, B.B King, Bill Withers, The Spinners, Celia de Cruz and King of Soul, James Brown. Local acts include Tabu Ley and his Afrisa International Band, Franco's TPOK Jazz and Cameroonian Manu Dibango.

Rumble in the Jungle - Ali vs Foreman Ticket -image courtesy of www.julienslive.com

The fight scheduled for September 1974 was pushed by a month to October, further complicating the logistics for Don King. The Zaire government also refused to pick the music festival's tab prompting new investors to be sought. In the end, all these were forgotten when in the sweltering humid conditions of Kinshasa, Muhammad Ali knocked George Foreman on the morning of 29th October,1974, truly one of the Fights of the Century!
The fight achieved many first being that both boxers were paid in excess of US$ 10 million. Consider too the fight was broadcast across the world (in Africa at some ungodly morning hours), it made the commercial possibilities for pay-per-view which in effect has also led to the diminishing interest in the sport among younger audiences.
The fight also launched the career of Don King who would dominate the boxing promoters' world for the next 2 decades before his influence diminishing in the 2000s.

Ali and the US Govt Hate-Love Relations
For his stand and vocal nature, he was always at crosshairs with the US State officials. His first encounter came when he joined the Nation of Islam and associating with the maverick Malcolm X. Though these early encounters were not as often quoted and publicised, they did form a basis of his love-hate relationship with the authorities. Initially following the teachings of Elijah Muhammad's Nation of Islam, he did convert to a Sunni Muslim in the 1970s.
His second encounter came in 1966/67 when he refused to be inducted in the Army which was engaged with the communist elements, VietCong in Vietnam. He had been drafted in the Army in 1962 and classified as fit for the mandatory draft in 1966. His defiance represented a first for a sportsman and person of his status refusing to bow to so-called nationalism or patriotism.
His third part is the aforementioned shuttle diplomacy in Africa representing the Carter administration's proposal of Moscow 1980 Olympic Games boycott. This again was met with mixed feelings both within the US administration and world. While it didn't yield much given 3 countries ended up at the Games, he did play his part in advocating for non-aggression among states.
His fourth and final act of diplomacy with the US Government was in 1990 when he was sought to negotiate with the Saddam Hussein establishment to release US hostages before the Gulf War. By this time, the authorities acknowledged that in Muhammad Ali they had a Citizen of the World who would best serve as a negotiator to a fellow Muslim. He did secure 15 hostages - a less known but significant triumph in the world of diplomacy.
The awards by the Bush administration among others were a foregone conclusion to a career worth noting.

Louisville Lip:Ali's Quotes
A trailblazer in trash-talking, getting into the opponent's head as well as giving press conference journos a wealth of words to note for their stories. Here are but a few of the many;

"The man who views the world at 50 the same as he did at 20 has wasted 30 years of his life"

"I hated every minute of training, but I said, 'Don't quit. Suffer now and live the rest of your life as a champion"

"Service to others is the rent you pay for your room here on Earth"

"I'm so mean, I make medicine sick"

"I am the greats, I said that even before I knew I was"

"The man who has no imagination has no wings"

"It's just a job. Grass grows, birds fly, waves pound the sand. I beat people up"

...Truly the Greatest of All Time!

Find two great pieces of his career and legacy first published by the Daily Nation and The Guardian respectively;
1. When a Great Sportsman becomes a Cultural Icon by Joyce Nyairo

2. Muhammad Ali: fighter, joker, magician, religious disciple, preacher by Kevin Mitchell

Sources: www.muhammadali.com,Wikipedia, www.time.com, Getty Images, Daily Nation, www.cnn.com

Sports Law Pioneer @SnoLegal talks to SportsKenya

Sometime last year, we at SportsKenya were part of a team that engaged in a campaign to get one of the pioneering ladies in Sports Law in Kenya for her studies in Spain. The campaign adopted both online and offline strategies which ran in tandem.

Sarah Ochwada @SnoLegal - Strike a Pose

We have the priviledge of bringing you Sarah Ochwada - also known as SnoLegal ( on Twitter @SnoLegal). She also does this blog here. We caught up with her on her exploits in Spain and this is what she had to say;

Q1) Hola SnoLegal! For the sake of our readers, kindly remind us what course you are doing, the institution and duration. 

Hola! I am studying International Sports Law at ISDE which is the acronym for... Wait for it... Instituto Superior de Derecho y Economia...that's Spanish by the way. Although my course is entirely in English. I am learning Spanish, though...but I digress...I shall be having theory lessons until June and then have my internship in Switzerland from July to December. It is a 1-year intensive course.

Q2) From your interaction thus far with sports experts from the rest of the world, what would you say their take is of the Kenyan & African sports scene at large?

Wow! What a question!  Some foreigners actually know a whole lot about African sports, and I'm not just talking about my lecturers but my classmates as well. For instance one of the Spanish guys in my class, Luis ( hello there if you're reading this) was talking to me about East African runners and he named them, knew the statistics from Kenya an Ethiopia dating back years! 
Another one of my classmates from Australia, Tiran (Oy mate!) knew about the Tikolo brothers from the Kenyan cricket team and just some crazy statistics about Kenyan cricketers... I mean it's really impressive how much people outside Africa know about sports in Africa and the athletes.
I also recall having a conversation with one of my lecturers about Kenyan rugby and another about the transfer of Kenyan players to European leagues... I guess there is a lot of interest in sports on our continent because of the talent on the continent which is exposed to the world stage through international competitions. And I think this interest will persist in years to come.

Q3)What is your take on Sports Management in Kenya and the need for Sports Laws?

In the last year or so that I spent in Kenya before coming to Madrid there was a positive change in terms of sports people and federations. Other stakeholders are also making an effort to improve their sports and consequently livelihoods of those involved. 
Management I think is the largest area that needs to be considered since you not only manage events but teams and individuals within the sports realm. And there are so many aspects to management too; finances, public relations, you name it.
What is lacking is tailor-made management for each discipline, each athlete, each federation. A blanket system may not work particularly for Kenya because of the numerous and varying needs of the.different players involved.Understanding each unique set of needs independently will be of great importance. 
As far as Sports Law is concerned, the need is even greater. General practitioners of law may not fully comprehend or appreciate the different facets of sports - from governance to contracts and any problem that may arise from there. 
We are moving into a time where talent pays, and sport is no longer a hobby but a livelihood. And with all livelihoods those in the sports fraternity require experts who will understand deeply their issues and offer sound advice & guidance to avoid disputes or mitigate harm down the line.

Q4 a) With the new Sports Bill in place, there are quite a number of legal hurdles that sports associations and bodies have to go through. Which 3 stick out for you?

Minor correction... Sports Act, not Bill. Once a Bill is passed by parliament it becomes an Act. (SK:..oops our bad, Ms learned friend...)

• Registration of Sports entities with the Sports Registrar. There surely will be a lot of confusion and misinformation when it comes to this point... Wait and see. But in a nutshell, all sports entities registered under the Societies Act will have to transition and be registered under the office of the Sports Registrar. (SK:...Note that football clubs crying foul about being targeted? )

• Disputes regarding registration and non registration. These will probably be the first few cases to be dealt with by the new Sports Tribunal. But I bet even the understanding of how to bring matters to this tribunal will be a major issue, not just for federations and sports persons but for their legal representatives too.

• The Sports Fund... How will it be run? How will federations receive money from this fund? This will be cause for some contention I believe.

But that being said, I look forward to the debates that will rise from these issues because they will help our sports mature. Bring it on!

Q4 b) Which 3 legal issues do you feel have been left out of the Sports Bill?

Oh my gosh! Now that I have had the opportunity to learn about things... One thing which struck me is, so these federations will be registered afresh, does that mean that they remain as societies or will we have to give them some sort of new name to distinguish them from other legal entities.
The other legal issues I have pondered about, I would rather not reveal at this moment because it is better to see how things unfold and whether we can find creative legal solutions for them as time goes by... But trust me, there is so much we can do. Baby steps for now.

Snolegal at EPL club West Ham's Bolery Ground - Upton Park London - image courtesy of SnoLegal

Q5) What has been your biggest eye-opener since you started the sports law course?

That you can practice Sports Law in any corner of the world but your practice may influence other lawyers in a completely different part of the planet. For example, I have a blog devoted to Sports &Entertainment issues in Kenya. I wrote articles based on what I thought would help Kenyans in these fields improve themselves. Lo and behold, I started getting emails and messages from Sports Lawyers and professors as far as UK, Argentina, Spain, Italy, Greece inquiring about a topic I had written or including some of my articles in their research. I guess I never thought that what I.was doing for my countrymen would have a great impact on other nations. That's totally awesome and incredibly humbling!

Q6) What is your favourite sport and why?

Right now it's Archery. I started as a means of giving myself a hobby that I can take well into my old age. I have come to find it very relaxing. And who knows, maybe in 10 years I can represent Kenya as an Olympic archer! (SK:...make that 2 to 6 years at most, #just saying...)

Q7) After you're done with the course, what next?

I come back home and continue with my practice, but of course there are certain specific targets that I hope to meet maybe in the first 3 years;

1. Transitioning our national sports federations, such as trying to get their constitutions up to date and in line with the Sports Act, Kenyan constitution and their (respective) International Federations;
2. (Host) at least 2 free workshops a year on sports law basics and management beginning with national sports federations administrators and then moving on to athletes;
3. Getting either the LSK (Law Society of Kenya) to have Sports Law as part of the continuous education for Advocates, or at least incorporate some aspects of Sports law into the already existing ones;
4. Teach. Initially I never wanted to do this but I have received offers from 2 universities in Nairobi to create a curriculum to teach undergraduates Sports Law as an elective module; and
5. Continue with Sports law commentaries, TV, Radio and Newspaper. I did a little of this before I left but it will be great to pick it up again.

Muchas gracias and all the best in your studies, estudiante graduado de la hembra :-) :-) :-) 

Olympics 2012 - Kenya busy missing Gold, what gives?

This weekend marked the start of the athletics programme in the ongoing London 2012 Olympic Games. From initial forecasts and given Kenya's pedigree in the middle and long distance, it was finally a chance for Kenyans to cheer on #TeamKenya.
But things went awry from that first day when Ethiopia's Tirunesh Dibaba took her Gold in the 10,000m for the 3rd consecutive Olympics after winning in Athens in 2004 and Beijing in 2008 ( remember she missed the World Athletics championships in Daegu at the World Athletics c'ships in 2011). Two of the Kenyan athletes did land the Silver and Bronze medals.
Second day and things went from bad to worse when the form book was suddenly changed with Great Britain's Mo Farah won the 10,000m followed by US's Galen Rupp while Ethiopia's emerging talent in Bekele's younger brother, Tariku was placed third.
Sunday and while we expected double gold, it was only a single one courtesy of Ezekiel Kemboi in the 3000m steeplechase ( and Bronze too from Mutai). The women marathon trio could only manage a Silver after running a tactical race but still wearing out before the final 5km.

What has been happening in London has been disappointing but not too shocking for those with a keener eye for matters athletics.
The team selection was first questioned especially for the 5,000m and 10,000m -men and women- when Athletics Kenya decided to take the trials for these races to Prefontaine - Oregon (USA). While our athltes were busy shuttling flights abroad, foreign athletes including Team GB's Mo Farah, Paula Radcliffe and US' Galen Rupp were pitching camp in the Rift Valley high altitude training facilities in Iten.

Next was the controversy in the marathon teams selection. It was decided that the selection would be done after the London marathon which coincidentally ought to have been the ideal case of knowing the route. But alas the closeness of the race seemed to have cost Kenya the title due to fatigue, burn-out or a combination of other factors. The men's team had to leave out one of the earlier selected athletes {The men's marathon is the last event of the Games and though #TeamKenya fans would love to see Kenyan athletes come through...the jury's still out there}

Then just a few weeks to the Games, Ezekiel Kemboi was moving between the courts and the cop stations to answer to alleged charges of rape. Though he did manage to get off to go to London, there is that small matter that he will have to answer to once back to Kenya. Though AK & NOC-K officials may not want to admit it, this must have been of concern within the camp. Kemboi is one of the biggest attractions on the Kenyan track, thanks to his antics on winning any of his major races. The accusations and media glare was almost reminiscent of what cost Kenya a world-class marathoner in the late Samuel Wanjiru.

Going into the 4th and 5th days in the athletics programme where Kenya's only medal hopes, the performance in Beijing 2008 now seems like a bar too high to achieve. Or shall the Rudishas, Jelimos, Kiprops, Cheruiyots do otherwise? Pray you do!

ION
Since Kenya seems to have struck the endorsement deal with Nike, wonder why none of our athletes seem to feature in their campaigns for London 2012 or preceding the Games. We have seen others like Visa International, P&G to name but a few. Maybe it's time that deal is revisited. And anyway, we're never told how much its worth. A little disclosure from NOC-K and AK maybe?

Olympics 2012 - No Fairy Tale yet...

Day 6 and Kenya's expected fairy tale is yet to be written. No surprises there so far. Well if our preparations and support given to the team is anything to go by, Kenyans should keep their medal expectations modest. A wise man once said, man cannot live on water alone...we paraphrase that to say...Kenyans cannot live on hope alone.
While it is good to be maintain positive vibes, it is also logical not to expect miracles when you have poor planning and execution. That our only representatives in Boxing, Benson Gicharu Njangiru and lady weightlifter Mercy Obiero were eliminated in the first round of their respective disciplines is no surprise.
The fingers point directly at the Amateur Boxing Association which runs Boxing in Kenya. They have been squabbling for the longest time costing the game its famed fortunes of the 1970s and 1980s. The officials have no semblance of major boxing fights locally both amateur and professional. The training facilities bequeathed to the Kenyan boxer were pathetic to say the least. Luckily London organizers did manage to give the boxer a trial at the Bristol camp.
Kenya Weightlifting Federation, well the sport has never been a major attraction save for the efforts of its chair one Pius Ochieng who represented the country both at Olympics (1984 & 1988) and Commonwealth level. It is funny that there are gyms in all major towns, but instead of engaging in professional level training and sport, most of the participants do it as a recreational thing ( others its for the good looks to attract members of the opposite sex...). Mercy's participation was courtesy of a wildcard by the International Weightlifting Federation after our other lifters got eliminated in the qualifying rounds for Africa. We admire the bravery that both Benson Gicharu and Mercy Obiero exhibited in their participation.


The one thing that's common in all this is the lack of preparedness by the respective sports bodies. Squabbles, mismanagement and poor planning is the name of the game. That the Sports Ministry has no been able to rein in on the bodies is not anything new. The National Olympic Committee -Kenya is left with no recourse than to take half-baked athletes to Games for them to be humiliated in the name of representing the country.
It's time we looked hard into what ails our sports federations and address those concerns. Anything else Kenya will remain a nondescript performer in major competitions across the world.

In Other News:
Our athletics coach of the Kenya Athletics team one Mr. Julius Kirwa made a very ambitious forecast of 12 Gold medals. It's good to prepare your charges mentally and get them to perform to their optimal, but it will remain that, a target, a dream. If Kenya does indeed win 12 Gold medals, we shall streak and run naked in Nairobi aka Flashmob-style when the team arrives back!

The Official London 2012 Olympics Film.'Sport At Heart'

This is the official London 2012 film from the London Olympic Games organisers with famous British personalities. Have a look and enjoy !

2012 Olympics : London We're Coming...

After last week's miss by the Kenyan volleyball women's national team, it is more than clear that we have finalised the list of sports disciplines that will be represented at the Olympics in London in July-August later this year. Next week we start a coverage of what should be the biggest sporting event of the year. Keep it here for the first and last of Kenya's rich Olympic history over the last 56 years.

London 2012 Olympics - Are we Ready?

This year's main sporting event the Olympics is starting to get much coverage and it is bound to get busier as we approach the July -August date. Kenya's National Olympic Committee was reported as starting some semblance of arrangements to prepare respective disciplines for the Games.
But this is far from the reality and the first month of 2012 is gone. Save for the women's volleyball team which was pitching camp at Kasarani and Nyayo stadium ( depending on which facility the SSMB would allow them to use), most of the other sporting disciplines are yet to start any formal camp.
Realistically the disciplines we might be represented in are Athletics, Swimming, Volleyball, Rowing and Boxing with the latter two engaged in leadership squabbles. Those which might bring in any form of medals are 2-3 but if the right preparations and technical expertise is employed 4 of these should reap some medals.
For the longest time, Kenyan teams preparing for international events have been under-training and the respective sports management bodies engaged in leadership squabbles, often involving financial help given to those in the team and also to secure freebies to such events.
The Government though pledging and putting in the necessary financial assistance and attractive bonuses, has not sought more transparency and accountability from the respective sports bodies.
It is tragic that the innocent sports people are the ones who suffer for the 'sins' of their superiors. While teams like Britain have been having their athletes holding their camp in the Kenyan Rift Valley, we have yet to get the camp of our national athletes even those who might not make it. Our sources tell us the Kenyan swimmers led by Jason Dunford, are hard at training and should pull a suprise amidst the traditional powers in the pool.
Boxing and Rowing we're still gathering information though not much is forthcoming from the respective national officials.

The Government of Kenya's busy working on other 'national issues' though promises have been made to avail at least half of the around KSh. 400 million required to send the team to London. other bodies such as Brand Kenya are tagging along to seek to sell the country as a worthy national brand not just with the traditional forms of tourism - game watching, beaches but also sports tourism.
GoK also formed a National Steering Committee to look into preparations of the London team and source for the reminder of the funds. This is an arduous task by any means. We also have the yet-to-be launched National Lottery...

146 days and counting...

Government of Kenya Pay-out - Great but more needs to be done...

Yesterday the Government of Kenya (GoK if you like) hosted sporting contingents that represented the country in the various sporting events ( All-Africa Games held in Maputo-Mozambique; World Athletics Championships held in Daegu- South Korea as well as Youth Commonwealth Games at the Isle of Man).
On card was the (un)official handing back of flags handed to the team captains by the Head of State. The more significant part was the handing out of bonuses which had been promised to medal winners of these events.
This has been a laudable feat by the GoK since they initiated this a few years ago. Mr. Pres, though went on to make 'pronouncements' where we shall put them (GoK) into task;

• 47 stadiums - this one is quite ambitious and laughable to say the least. While we seek to develop sports development at the lower levels, this is one area we have not been successful. Look at the existing infrastructure and it paints a sorry state. We do not have proper steps to develop and maintain grounds, sporting clubs and related facilities. We have also not done a good job to providing incentive to private entrepreneurs to encourage investment in the same. We have not safeguarded what would be some major sporting grounds such as has been seen in Nakuru's Afraha stadium, Nyeri's Ruringu stadium, to name but a few.
  

So Mr. President, please check again, this might be paying lip-service to sport.

• Bidding and Hosting International events - in the last 20 years we have managed to host some good international events. But if you look carefully, EXCEPT for the All-Africa Games in 1987, the rest have been more or less single discipline events; the most recent Africa Athletics Championships last year in August. Most of these have also been for less than a week going if we look at time spent within our borders. That informs our lack of facilities for hosting fairly large teams of participants. Sample this, if we bid for the next Commonwealth Games, where would you host the contingents of over 40 countries? Can our infrastructure withstand added pressures of the visitors ( traffic especially)?

We need to stop making populist statements just for the sake and carefully look into seeing to it we develop sports centres which can support modest numbers of visiting and local sporting enthusiasts...learn a thing or two from Munich's Olympic Stadium.

• Sports Lottery - this is another of the proposed developments which is included in the work-in-progress, yet-to-be-tabled Sports Bill. Another noble idea that seeks to raise funds for competing teams to major sports events such as the Olympic Games. We have a big one in 2012 in London ( which also coincides with the Queen of England's Diamond Jubilee...see the significance?). Given Kenyans' love for lottery and such like activities, this is a process that needs to be done with proper audits and openness to avoid the fraud that plagues such processes. It would become another major flop if any undue influence and inconsistencies are detected.

Mr. President, this is the part where you ought to admonish the Minister for Youth & Sports asking him where the 'hell' the Sports Bill is. Your term in office is slowly edging to its sunset & what better way for the youth and sporting talent to remember you than a Bill recognising their worth and contribution as well as formalising sports development in the country?

• Sports Fund - though it might seem unrelated, I would wish to add this to your plate for consideration. Why? Well we have seen many a sporting talent blossom in their short-stints or even in their fairly modest careers only to fall into hard times once they are in retirement. Some have fallen off to the need of rehabilitation from drugs and alcohol abuse. Well such a Fund would be set aside to lump an athlete's part-winnings and bonuses almost like the retirement funds and one can access these in their later lives. It will go a long way in inculcating a culture of saving in our current generation which is out to spend every single cent in sight.

Mr. President, once again, consult with your worthy economic advisors and the retired both current and soon-to-be would be in awe of you for remembering their fate.

Over to you, GoK!

David Rudisha 'rudishas' the 800m world record home

What a weekend it has been for Kenyan athletics! Not that we are never in the spotlight but this time, breaking this or that record. David Rudisha - son of another famous Rudisha (Daniel) who in his day was a 400m specialist and Olympic bronze medallist in 1968 - made sure that the record to the men's 800m 'comes back home'. The previous world record holder though Kenyan-born, changed citizenship to become a Dane before going on to conquer the world in the distance ( ....wonder if he qualifies for dual citizenships under the new constitution dispensation...). He posted a time of 1.41:09 shaving of 0.02 secs.

His performance in the last two years has been phenomenal and it was only time before this young Kenyan athlete to cement his place in the 2-lap event. He also drew inspiration from the ladies in the names of Pamela Jelimo and Janeth Jepkosgei. They have led Kenya's onslaught in the distance in the last 3 years.  Let's see how he maintains his hold over the distance as the Commonwealth in India and later Olympic Games in 2012 shall be.

(Fact: Even with all the pedigree in athletics, it is the first time that a Kenyan athlete claims the record...). For now though, let's raise our glasses to this true Kenyan hero!


UPDATE:
In less than 6 days, a record that took more than 13 years has been bettered by you guessed it, the one and only David Rudisha...1.41:01!  It is amazing to break a record but to better oneself within such a short time, we are lost for words. Another running sensation from this beloved country of Kenya. Makes us feel so full of pride, what with all the weekend 'renewal of vows' for the nation!

Commonwealth Games ....a Folklore past its Time?

A sports event of any magnitude is bound to excite the passions of the enduring sports enthusiast. The buzz that accompanies it too is supposed to be almost fever pitch and reaching climax highs once the event starts.
For all African sports or otherwise, this year has been really 'sportified' if there is such a word. Starting with an African Cup of Nations that almost stalled before it started, the 2010 World Cup, the African Athletics Championships among other highlights; the next stop is the Commonwealth Games  - New Delhi - India ( what they are calling, Friendly Games)

This lore started by the British to cater for its colonies or territories is supposedly the 3rd largest multi-sport event after the Olympic Games and the Asian Games *( this one is disputable) . In fact it was initially known as the British Empire Games!
Pre-2010 World Cup ,most pundits had initially expressed their doubts of the African continent hosting such a major event. South Africa shown the light for Africa and didn't disappoint ( proving even our pessimist bone wrong...)
 (Logo from the 2010 Commonwealth  Games website,http://www.cwgdelhi2010.com/)
Fast forward the Asian sub-continent with India in the spotlight. Now this is one of the greatest sporting nation known more for its exploits in cricket, archery, hockey, indoor games such as squash among others.  They earned the right to hold Games and sought to prove themselves as the next frontier, after China wowed us in 2008 with its Beijing Games.
Allegations of corruption, poor workmanship and delays in venues are among the woes that the New Delhi authorities are fighting with. Word has it that the Indian Government might be felled by this event if all these allegations finger any authorities in the power allays. This might also cost India future bids for Olympics or any major event of its kind.

While we are not at liberty to pass judgement, 1 and 1/2 month into the event, isn't it time we wondered if these Games are doing us any good? The current bill that India incurs for hosting it stands at US$ 1.6 billion - easily making it the most expensive Commonwealth Games ever.
There are also the numerous sporting disciplines that have aligned their calendars accordingly to try accommodate their teams honouring their presence there. Rugby, athletics, swimming are some of the main ones. Already 3 major stars in athletics who would have featured in the Games have withdrawn, Usain Bolt of course being the biggest.

We also know of the ever lurking danger of 'terrorists' and their attention-seeking methods. New Delhi was visited by these in 2008 and has been a fragile city given the islands and aggressive neighbours surrounding the Federal State of India.  Security has over 100,000 security officials seeking to make it impregnable to these elements.
We also know the weather conditions that have hit Asia and the northern hemisphere. With some places recording dangerously high rainfall levels, and others having temperatures soaring into their 30s and 40 degrees Centigrade, it is NOT your sports person's favourite haunt.
Just like many other Games of such proportions, what legacy do they leave for New Delhi and India as a whole? There are many concerns that some of the venues may turn out to dumpsites and wasting white elephants ....
Regarding appearances as has become of such national representation, some elite sportsmen may opt to give them a pass. We all know there is nothing much coming in the way of athletes and sports people except for a nice medal and photo op which most can't trade for their appearance fees in more lucrative events. This makes the Games lacklustre, ensuring media rights become a hard sell for the organisers.

When all's said and done, while we join the bandwagon of critics (and not proposing any recommendations), it's about time we started calling it like it is ...on some of these Games.  Read about more of the Games here and concerns about the safety.

Our Take-Out : 2010 World Cup in South Africa

(Image courtesy of freedigitalphotos.net)
The party's over, vuvuzelas quiet and for the next few days all else football (or soccer)'s relegated to the transfer market ( though the Kenyan Premier League has resumed...). There were highs and lows, in & outs and whys & wherefores relating to the tournament. Off from some naysayers ( including our own team here at SportsKenya) and critics we managed to scheme out some of the 8 major stand-outs;

1)Big v/s Small : (Image courtesy of afreeimages.com)
 seasoned versus freshmen, top seeds v/s lower ranked nations, whichever way you look at it, there was not much of that once the tournament started. For experienced sides such as France and former champs Italy to be bundled out in the first round and for Uruguay to finish fourth ahead of other countries such as England, Portugal, Brazil,Argentina and Africa's own top seeds, this tournament proved too unpredictable for any bookmaker. But when push came to shove, the top two nations who had played some superior games Netherlands and Spain faced off in a not-so-entertaining Final.

2)FIFA's 'Profitability v/s Host Nation's own investment: This is a question that hosting nations need to start asking themselves. Who makes the biggest catch in terms of profitability and invested properties, naming rights and other revenue streams? While FIFA's reported to have made around US$ 3.2 billion in revenue, South Africa's economy is expected to expand by only 0.5% in GDP terms - that's counting all other factors constant. So there is something called legacy and the ensuing infrastructural costs? And someone has been asking if Zuma & Co would want to bid for Olympics? Well they just did!


(Image Courtesy of Abisa.co.za)
3)Vuvuzela & Jabulani or is it Jobulani?: The noise-maker and the runaway ball were the main talking points in the pitch and around the stadiums. What other heritage could we have given the World Cup after our own African teams disappointed us massively? The more they criticized the fan-horn, the more sales it reported. Here's 10 of the best about it. As for the Adidas Jabulani ball, some of the very critics such as England's Fabio Capello had been given the chance to play the ball earlier but thanks to the hype from the media about their abilities they didn't give it a try.
Iker Casillas had started on it too but after keeping clean slates, I guess there were other excuses to give besides the ball to blame.

4)FIFA's 'Partners' v/s Ambush Marketers: FIFA has been trying to make major corporate firms to give long term commitments to the sport through the rather complicated (but often over-valued) sponsorship arrangement. This has seen some major companies avoid this arrangement and instead engage in developing ads which are drawn towards 'sowing where FIFA says they have not reaped'. From the 'Oranje beauties, to Nike's Writing the Future and Pepsi-Cola's African rendezvous, top companies which have previously been associated with the game have looked for cheaper ways to create their own buzz around FIFA's tournaments. Back to the drawing boards Mr. Blatter?

5)'Real'Football versus Boring:
From a wide range of views, this was a rather technical game rather than attacking game. Given the statistics of having the 2nd lowest goal average since the World Cup begun at 2.3 goals per game, there is need for footballing nations to stop wasting our valuable viewership. For the Final, we had to wait for a miserable 116 minutes before spiking our rather low spirits, no wonder Americans rue this game for its lack of 'exciting' moments!

6)Social media: As we had noted earlier, social media was bound to play a huge part in this tournament and this shows the extent to which this will affect future sporting and landmark events. From Twitter, Facebook, Blogger (like yours truly who chose to watch this from the terrace), REAL TIME reportage and coverage just got better!

7) FIFA's History books redrafted : A few footnotes for FIFA on its history books; South Africa's first round exit made it the first host nation to exit that early; new order in winning nations meant that Spain joins the rare privilege accorded to 9 other nations across the world. Europe pulled a fast one on South America making it 10 out of 19 (the rest obviously going to South American countries)

8) Africa's Future: While most critics maybe quick to dismiss the effect the tournament had on the continent, it is fair to say that Africa shall be proud of South Africa for putting together this event. Measured we shall be in our praise since very few countries had any economic or commercial impact from the tournament. What was even worse was the fact that the party came in late for African teams with only Ghana making an effort to the quarters but again showing the inexperience that cripples most of the continent's teams. But learning, we sure did learn a thing or two from Africa's 'first-world' state.

As Brazil start blazing the world as they look to host the first of its major tournaments in the next 4 years, let's hope African countries soak in more lessons from this as they hope for the windfall sometime maybe from ....2030? We can ask Paul the Octopus, well over to you FIFA!

Safaricom Safari Sevens - Keeenyaaa !

After a somewhat disappointing season in the IRB Sevens circuit , the Kenyan fans welcome the boys home and hope to crown the season by winning this novel tournament. The tournament celebrating its 14th consecutive year shall also be marking a new milestone by having the new sponsors mobile phone company, Safaricom Limited, hence a rather interesting name Safaricom Safari Sevens.
The event has been a major sporting extravaganza over the 3-day period that its held and is amust for any rugby fan (though some purists may differ with us) and city sports fan looking for a weekend of fun and socialising beyond the normal clubbing scene that's all too common in Nairobi.
Due to the exposure the team has gotten from the IRB 7s, the rugby crowds have continually become big with the recently held Bamburi Super Series and Kenya Cup bearing witness to this. The performance of the 15-a-side team though has a long way to go to match their 7s counterparts but there is room for improvement.
The same must be said of the 7s team which witnessed some lacklustre performances in Twickenham , Scotland and London, England as the IRB circuit came to a close. Kenya Rugby Union officials and the technical bench surely have some work to do before the start of the 2010/11 season in December where we hope to retain the no.6 ranking achieved in the 2008/9 season if not better.
We cannot forget that the game has borne some of the best rugby players locally including, Sammy Khakame, Benjamin Ayimba, Oscar Osir, and the current crop ably led by the Injera brothers ( I hear the youngest in their family's also making a knock on to the senior side)
We can join our boys as they make their homecoming trip and look forward to a worthy weekend. The team shall use the tournament to weed out any poor performances and also prepare for the Commonwealth Games to be held later this year in New Delhi, India. We also hope the Kenya Rugby Union can make a bid for inclusion in the IRB circuit { if and when they make an addition(s) to the current 8 tournaments }.
Surely if we are to make a mark in the inaugural sevens inclusion in the Olympics in 2016, we need to start working on it NOW ! We shall be reporting live from the venue and big kudos to Safaricom for sponsoring the tournament and making an impact in the sport. We also thank the organisers for availing us the platform to cover the event and its peripheral activities.  Come let's cheer our boys, KEEENYAAA....

Volleyball : Kenyan Queens do it again

This year's Women’s African club championship held in Mauritius saw our three teams qualify for the semi-finals, with Kenya Prisons winning the title, 3-1 sets against Kenya Pipeline. This is something of a perennial thing for Kenyan women clubs and this has made them contribute to national and continental success.

The only tragedy is that we have not been able to translate this to the international scene with our team losing mercilessly in the World Championships and Olympics respectively. Methinks the new Kenya Volleyball Federation has its work cut out. With the Commonwealth Games, Olympics and world championships coming up in the next 2 years, better start working now. I do hope you've resolved your little tiff with the Sports Stadia Management Board to avail to you the Kasarani Gym (which the Federation ought to pay for though the Government can throw in a subsidy or two).

World Record? Methinks there are better things we could be doing

Over the weekend, we were treated to one of the oldest ( and lamest) athletics record being broken. OK for me, there was not much to celebrate given the fact that if our Kenyan athletes had kept their selfish interests (and those of their agents) at bay, we would have added another gold at the 1500m race.
That we could afford to cobble up a team and even contribute athletes to other teams to help us break the 4x1500m record is really despicable. What happened to the more lucrative and recognisable 4x400m? We ruled this discipline in the 70s winning the 1972 gold ahead of the Britons, and repeated these performances in the Commonwealth Games in Christchurch-New Zealand and Edmonton-Canada in 1974 and 1978 respectively. The heritage lasted long enough into the 80s and 90s, where we won gold in the 1990 Commonwealth Games Auckland, New Zealand and bronze in the 1992 Olympic Games in Barcelona.
After these we have concentrated on middle and long distance races which are no longer our stronghold anymore as evidenced by the Ethiopian, Eritrean and once in a while Chinese demolition.
As for those who celebrated with the 1500m brothers in Brussels, mine was a case of mourning days gone by !

Rugby 7s to feature in 2016 Olympics

For what would have been a worthy opportunity for Kenya's Rugby 7s team to showcase and fight for the medal standings, the wait has to be a little longer. The IOC has decided to consider the Rugby 7s as a feature sporting discipline in the 2016 Summer Olympic Games where the host city will be known on October 9th,2009 at the 121st IOC Session in Copenhagen.
Cities bidding to host the Games include, Chicago, Rio de Janeiro, Madrid and Tokyo (which wishes to host the second time after first hosting in 1964). My take would be for Rio or Chicago (especially given Pres. Obama's strong endorsement).
As for rugby 7s, the IRB had put a good show including Kenya's own Humphrey Khayange. Let's hope our Kenyan team will make the cut and we'll have developed a formidable team by then. 7 years is not too much to ask for preparations.
Other sports considered for the 2012 Games are Women's Boxing. For the 2016 Games, Golf will also be featured.

NOCK Elections...same old same old !

One of Kenya's oldest sports association held its elections over the weekend with the usual controversies about this and that post. The association attracts some of the most lucrative deals ranging from sponsorship deals with the partners of the International Olympic Committee such as Nike and others; to annual grants from the same body and also Government support. 

Again the same officials are usual gallivanting across the world being lavished by various cities as they wish to win their votes as they bid for the Olympic Games. These among other trappings make more attractive than other associations in town. Given that their mandate too only becomes busy when the country's team is about to go for the Olympics, these guys enjoy one of the easiest rides in sports administration.

Thus when one veteran official lamented that he was being sidelined from the gravy train- ironic since he's also led the athletics' world with similar if not worse tactics- even though the second most powerful official from the same body was reportedly able to sneak in his nomination papers for the same position our official was fighting for.

Well, most of the officials maintained their positions but the exception ( and I hope she doesn't disappoint) is the election of Catherine Ndereba as a committee member. Her election is precedent since most sports bodies are led by retired hands in their disciplines. The transition she will make into sports administration may augur well for the future of sports in the country. I only wish the same was translating into the sports bodies....

But surely why do we need officials holding office for 2-3 terms yet they are not adding value to the sport ? Talk about a revolution !

Beyond 2008

I'd finally come to my element this weekend as our Kenyan athletes blazed the trail in Beijing finishing 15th position overall. The local papers have been all over each other trying to say this is our best performance ever. SEE: here and here & and finally this one .
That notwithstanding, I'll take a reality check on some of my thoughts;
1. Kenyan women won 2 of their first gold medals in the Olympics. That's a outstanding performance by all means. What was even more amazing was the modesty of the ladies winning the medals, with Jelimo -800m coming to her form only in the last 3 months while Jebet -1500m has been running in the shadows and not made such as major mark until now.
2. Kenya also won her first marathon title in the form of Samuel Wanjiru in the men's race. This gentleman was running in his 3rd major marathon. Superb performance !
3. Away from athletics, the 2 other disciplines which we almost came close were in the swimming by the Dunford brothers with Jason making it to the finals of the 100m butterfly race. Commendable performance too. Tae-kwon-do had 2 representatives 1 each for the men and women. Our lady fighter Milka Akinyi lost in the bronze medal contest to the Venezuelan Dalia Contreras. The gentleman didn't fare well though. Another new entrant was the sole representative in the rowing competition Mathew Lidaywa.
4.Some of the silver medals were gold medals in the making if we pushed a little harder....let me be plain with Ms. Ndereba in the women's marathon, E.Kipchoge in the 5000m to say but the least.
5. Coming to the worse parts, our 4 boxers did not get past the first rounds given that they were carrying the hopes of the nation. That's a dismal performance to say the least.
6. Kenyan officials were at it again. Starting with the qualifiers, the management made some mistakes which almost cost the country medals ...this is the case of one Ezekiel Kemboi who I said here should not have gone to Beijing. Some other errors included the sudden suspension of Muthoka who is said to have tested positive for drugs(unconfirmed reports), ticket bookings for athletes and officials, largesse that is usually the team management. And why oh why do we need such a huge number of officials ? Check this.

Overall the team showed we can achieve if we push ourselves and motivate our athletes well. I don't know but maybe the KShs. 1.75m from the Head of State may have had a hand in this. We must also thank corporate firms for promising more of these rewards to the participants.
Beyong 2008;
a) Kenya badly needs a sports policy. I've said this once I'll say it again. We need a platform from which to launch ourselves to the next level. This is a good launching pad and we can't afford to lose this.
b) We need to retain our best talent in the country. Our consolation is that none of the defecting athletes won any medals on these Games but that's just a matter of time. We can't afford to let go of our countrymen-if we're to find better ways of rewarding and maintaining them then that be it.
c) Kenya needs to invest more in sports- with most of our national grounds regaining their shape, we need to add more of these especially at provincial levels where almost all sports grounds were grabbed or mismanaged. This need not be done by the Government alone but in partnership with private firms or every concessioning.
d) Focus should move quickly to the 2010 World Cup and Africa Athletics championships along with the All-Africa Games 2011 and Olympics in 2012. Well laid out plans of action and parameters should be set to achieve goals at each of the said events. We can't afford to lay on our wreaths of glory only for us to falter.

Is it me or is there like a 20-year cycle going here ? Every 20 years, Kenya sets history in the Olympics.
1968: First gold medal -Naftali Temu KE- 3000m steeplechase- 3 gold overall for Kenya.
1988: First gold medal- African boxing- Robert Wangila Napunyi KE- welterweight- 5 gold overall for Kenya.
2008: First gold medal- Kenyan women- Pamela Jelimo KE-800m- 5 gold overall !