It is possible to increase the tally of medals in those ‘lesser events’ and qualify our athletes for major championships
It was an experience that will not be easily forgotten. Those who were at the Nyayo National Stadium last week witnessed one of the greatest sporting events ever to come to Kenya.
The 17th Safaricom Africa Athletics Championships was a tremendous success not only for the athletes, but for the entire country.
In some of the most pulsating days in local athletics history, the event was defined by cold weather, dramatic moments, emotions, huge upsets, glorious home victories and massive celebrations by the Kenyan crowds. It was an electrifying event with tremendous national pride on display.
It was a week when approximately 30,000 people of different ages, tribes, cultures and religions braved mostly chilly temperatures each day and came together to cheer their countrymen and women, to witness just how our athletes take on and defeat the rest of Africa and celebrate Kenya’s athletic prowess on the world stage.
The world saw Kenya positively through the television coverage. It was a marvelous marketing tool for our country internationally and many visitors were left with a very positive image of Kenya, the sport and its people.
The event contributed significantly to the country’s growing sports tourism.
The economic benefits of the championships were far reaching. The most visible of these has been the infrastructure development and the beautification of the Nyayo Stadium, which saw a complete facelift in the run-up to the championships.
Kenya’s domination of the middle and long distance races was what the majority of fans came to witness. Whenever the red, black and green clad athletes hit the front, there was a huge cheer for them.
With 10 gold, seven silver and eight bronze medals and a total of 25 won by Kenya, it was the most successful showing by Kenya ever in these continental games.
A sweep of the men’s middle and long distance races and two remarkable clean sweeps in the men’s 800m and the 5,000m was a tremendous show of might by the Kenyans.
My favorite victory was that of David Rudisha in the 800m but I was just as impressed by the rare gold and silver medals in the men’s and women’s 4x400m relays which ended the championships on a winning note and confirmed Kenya’s placing at the top of Africa for the 1st time ever.
Women’s champions Nancy Lagat, Vivian Cheruiyot and Milcah Chemos lived up to their top billing and exhibited class winning their respective races. The rivalry with neighbours Ethiopia was on show throughout the championships though this time, they were nowhere close.
Only in the women’s 10,000m were the Kenyans upstaged by them. However, the sprints and the field events left a lot to be desired and even with the fervent home support, we struggled to perform to satisfaction.
Lessons drawn from Nairobi 2010 are clear.
Athletics Kenya must invest significantly in the athletes and coached for our weaker events.
It is possible to increase the tally of medals in those lesser events by the next championships and qualify our athletes for major championships.
These championships have also shown that Kenyans are hungry for top quality athletics action given the overflowing crowds each day.
With the infrastructure in place, it is time to bid for bigger championships and lobby for major one day meetings that will quench the thirst of the massive number of athletic fans in this country.
Any major sporting event, especially one of a continental Athletics championship’s magnitude, will necessarily highlight not only the world class talent on display but also the special marriage between business and sport.
On the event management and marketing front, private sector involvement is crucial to the success of any major sports event.
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