The just concluded Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, Scotland, and World Athletics Under-20 Championships in America’s Eugene, Oregon, came with lessons for Kenya.
The country has a lot of ground to cover ahead of the 2028 Los Angeles Olympic Games if the performance from the just concluded Commonwealth Games is to go by.
The Commonwealth Games, held from July 23 to August 2, were marked by a drop in performance hence providing a glimpse on what the country should do to improve in future.
The country collected 12 medals: three gold, four silver and five bronze medals to finish 13th overall. Among African countries, this was behind Nigeria in seventh place and South Africa in 11th place.
It was Kenya’s worst outing since the 1962 Games in Perth, Australia Games where the country collected five medals; two gold, two silver and one bronze all from athletics.
It was the first time the country got less than four gold medals with countries like Australia and India making inroads in the country’s distance races domain.
From the collection, the country managed only one medal outside athletics where Joshua Amunga won bronze in weightlifting.
Sports federations and the National Olympic Committee of Kenya (NOCK) must now actualise the debate on diversification for the country to end overdependence on athletics.