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Kenya produces world-class athletes. But why do so many struggle to make a living from sports? Athletes and experts debate funding, sponsorship, missed opportunities and the future of Kenyan sports.
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00:07This week on the 77% Street Debate.
00:11We say that talent is developed not beyond 20-something years.
00:15When you get there, you are old enough, you can now do the refereeing, coaching or anything else,
00:19or maybe journalism like you are doing.
00:24If you fail as an athlete, become a journalist.
00:26Every time the Athletics Integrity Unit releases a list of dopers,
00:32there is a likelihood that there will be a Kenyan in that list.
00:35You can't leave in the sport, at least not locally.
00:38The sport doesn't really support you, you support the sport.
00:40We cannot continue clapping for cramps and we know we can get better.
00:50Hello and welcome to the 77% Street Debate.
00:53My name is Edith Kimani and this week, we are in the home of champions.
00:57Now, I know because I'm Kenyan, you say I'm biased.
01:00But truly, when you look at Kenya's performance in the Paris Olympics,
01:03coming back home with 11 medals, four of which were gold.
01:07Fast forward to the Athletics Championships in Tokyo a year later, another 11 medals,
01:12this time seven gold.
01:13At Glasgow, at the Commonwealth Games, 12 medals.
01:17So it's not surprising to say that this is the home of champions.
01:20But what do these medals that Kenya is earning abroad not say about the state of sports here in Kenya?
01:27Who better to answer this question for me than some fellow Kenyans?
01:29And guys, listen, I don't get starstruck on this set,
01:33but when you have the fastest man in Africa on your panel, you get a little butterflies.
01:37Ferdinand Omanyala, your record still unbroken on the continent as a sprinter.
01:42What is it like to be a professional athlete in this country?
01:46It's a bit tough because basically we've not professionalized sports in the country.
01:51And going against countries that have taken this seriously, it's a bit of a challenge.
01:56But, you know, on the other side, I say use what you have to get what you can.
01:59I mean, and that's what I did.
02:01If I could have put my mind into such situations, I wouldn't be here.
02:04And I'm glad that I managed to be that person who changes that notion
02:09and be the person who changes the minds of people, not just in sports,
02:12but even in different professions that you can get whatever you want
02:16and get to the limits and the heights that you want to get to.
02:20So, um...
02:21By the way, speaking of heights, he's speaking on this high chair because he injured himself.
02:25It's not because he's feeling too special to stand.
02:28But, you know, as you're speaking, I'm thinking that you're doing something
02:31very different here in East Africa.
02:32We're known for middle and long distance running, but you're doing sprinting.
02:36What possessed you to do that?
02:38It was more of a trial and error thing.
02:41I used to play rugby, and during the times that I was in high school,
02:44the Kenya Sevens team was really doing well, and my dream was to become one of the stars.
02:49And I remember I used to have the pictures of them on my books in high school.
02:52So, that's the dream I wanted to achieve.
02:55But then, when I got into university, after that, I'm doing my course.
03:00I decided to join the Mean Machine, the clubs in the university.
03:05But then the game was a bit tough.
03:07I decided to drop down to the lower league.
03:10That's why I found the guy who told me, you're a bit fast for us.
03:13You need to go and try something in sprinting.
03:15Too fast for rugby?
03:16Yeah, I was enjoying the game.
03:18Every time I could catch the ball, everybody could go back for kick-off
03:22because they know that's a try.
03:23Look at this guy.
03:24I love how athletes always take the chance to flex.
03:27I was too quick for those guys.
03:28But it is what it is.
03:31So, he challenged me and told me, try athletics.
03:35So, I went back and downloaded the calendar of events,
03:39and there was an event in Mumias.
03:41And I said, let me borrow a bus and just go and try.
03:44Yeah.
03:44So, Mumias is in Western Kenya.
03:46And from that trial, you ended up, to this day as we are speaking, the Africa champion.
03:49Have you had the kind of government backing that we think athletes at your level have?
03:56They come in when they need to.
04:01Because they only need you when you've done the trials
04:04and then you've qualified to get into the teams.
04:07And that's when they come in and support.
04:10I wish it were different because let's take an example.
04:13We're having the Olympics in two years.
04:15I'm sure by now we know the probables.
04:17So, why don't we just, like, support these guys for the two years
04:20and just, you know, qualified or not qualified.
04:23Let's put them in that camp and grow with them.
04:26But then it's been tough.
04:27Like I said, I tell athletes, and I'll say it here,
04:31that let government backing be a bonus.
04:34Okay.
04:34So, you spoke about rugby.
04:36And here, I mean, you can see the size of this guy, right?
04:38At the gym, we call him the house.
04:40Yanni Nyumba, a building.
04:42His name is Josh.
04:42He's such a sweetheart, but also a professional rugby player.
04:45Give me an idea of what it takes to be a professional rugby player.
04:48I mean, you have to pay with your body, right?
04:51It's a very tough endurance sport.
04:53How did you choose to do this?
04:55And how did you become a professional at it?
04:57I was a bit too rough for any other sport.
05:00So, every coach just pointed at rugby.
05:02It's like, yeah, I think you'll do well there.
05:04So, it was a natural path for me, really.
05:07And then I got lucky enough to get supported by people who are looking for talent.
05:11And the rest is history.
05:15Staying at the level or competing with people who are just as good as you
05:19or just as talented, that's the difference maker.
05:22So, let me invite another athlete here, Veronica.
05:25Have you guys ever heard of rollball?
05:27Have you?
05:28Ever heard of rollball?
05:30Ferdinand has.
05:31Anyone else?
05:32Okay.
05:33So, tell us what rollballing is, how you got into the sport, and you are a champion of Africa.
05:38So, rollball basically is a combination of basketball, handball, and roller skating, yeah?
05:43So, we play in a court like a handball court while skating.
05:48So, I got to the rollball team when I entered campus in J-Quart,
05:52and I think I was lucky because you can't find such a sport in the rural areas.
05:57I saw people playing, and I was like, yeah, this one, this is cool.
06:01So, I got into the team, and I'm happy that I'm talented, and I got chosen.
06:07Again with the flex.
06:09I thank God I'm talented.
06:12So, how did you get to the point where you are an African champion in a very little known sport
06:16in Kenya?
06:17If you don't have government support, who's funding you?
06:19Who's supporting you?
06:21Actually, myself.
06:24It's funny because I'm a student.
06:27I was a student at that time, yeah?
06:29So, I could use my pocket money to buy my equipment.
06:33So, it's either you are eating or you are buying equipment.
06:37So, you pick one.
06:40Yeah.
06:41So, the only time that equipment, you are funded with equipment and everything,
06:46it's the only time that you're going to participate internationally.
06:49Okay.
06:50And it's not a guarantee.
06:52You may or you may not be funded.
06:53Okay.
06:54Let me come back to Josh here because we are standing on a rugby pitch, right?
06:58And I've seen so often, the boys who are representing our team say,
07:01we actually have to take a nine-to-five job because it just doesn't pay enough.
07:05Is this the experience with you?
07:07100%.
07:08You have to do something else.
07:10You can't leave on the sport, at least not locally.
07:12It's impossible.
07:13The sport doesn't really support you.
07:15You support the sport.
07:16Yeah.
07:16So, Ferdinand, just explain to people who are not athletes,
07:19just the amount of time, effort, and money it takes in order for you to participate
07:25at the level that you're participating in.
07:27We were doing an invoicing with my manager like three weeks back,
07:30just after the season.
07:31This year, we've spent a couple of, around $45,000 on flights, on treatments,
07:38on physios, on accommodations, and all that stuff.
07:42So, you can imagine that's a lot of money to stay at the top.
07:45Yeah.
07:45So, Wanjiko here is a journalist.
07:47When we talk about the money, I can't help but think about the budget,
07:51which was read earlier this year in June.
07:53And Grace is already laughing because the Kenya Academy of Sports
08:00specifically got 280 million Kenya shillings.
08:04So, where is the money going if it's not going towards funding people like Ferdinand?
08:08Well, first of all, you asked me about the Kenya Academy of Sports and their budget.
08:13That money goes to development.
08:15That's talent development, and she's in a better position to talk about it.
08:18But my thing, what I have seen in the industry is that most of them,
08:23when they give us the budget or they give the sports ministry the budget,
08:27it will go to the popular sports, more or less.
08:30Like, Athletics Kenya won't go to start really knocking and trying to pursue.
08:34They will have their calendar of events.
08:35It's already ready for them.
08:37It's easy to justify.
08:38They are given football as well.
08:40But I look at somebody like Veronica Rollball there.
08:43Every so often, they will go camp at the ministry to try to justify why.
08:47Please pause.
08:48Veronica, tell us about how you had to camp at the ministry.
08:51So the World Cup has already started here, and there is no feedback from the government
08:55if they are going to find us to go to the World Cup or not here.
08:59So the first day has passed, the second day.
09:01The third day, we were like, yo, why don't us, the players, go to the Ministry of Sports?
09:06We sit there and we wait for the Ministry of Sports to get out of the office and tell us
09:10what's up.
09:12And it was only then that your tickets were paid for?
09:14Yes.
09:14Okay.
09:15Ferdinand, as Veronica was speaking, you were laughing yourself in incredulity.
09:20But I think, has this happened to you as well?
09:22Yeah, just recently we went.
09:24Recently?
09:25Yeah, yeah, yeah.
09:26So we were going for the World Relays, right?
09:29And it was in Botswana.
09:31So we went, they told us, you guys go and perform, go and compete.
09:36We'll pay your advances after.
09:37So it took three months to wait for 45,000 Kenya shillings for the work for three days.
09:44You know, it's a sad set of affairs.
09:46So when you asked, like, you have to get a job to fund your career.
09:50But then at the end of the day, you look at it and you're like, even if I make it
09:54to the Olympics team, how much am I going to spread up money across four years?
09:57Okay.
09:57So let me ask Grace, because she's here under the banner of Kenya Academy of Sports, under the Ministry of
10:02Sports.
10:03When you hear such stories, because you've been given a very specific duty, which is to identify talent, to nurture
10:10it and to developing it.
10:11But are you developing it so that they're waiting three months to get $500?
10:17People may not understand where we are.
10:19And as a government, you do not wake up in one day and click a button and things happen.
10:25But the government lay foundations and come up with policies that will help us not to get in such situations.
10:33And I must say that their foundations that have been laid, their policies that have been made towards bettering their
10:41elites and their elites' welfare.
10:43One of them is what the Kenya Academy is doing.
10:45When you hear the 280 is to develop.
10:48Yes, actually.
10:49We had the question about where is the money going?
10:52It's to develop infrastructure that will go to grassroots.
10:55You hear someone like Josh mentioned something to do.
10:59He was lucky to be spotted, to be scouted.
11:03Now, this scouting will happen at grassroots.
11:05We are doing our aspirations to have 290, one academy in each and every constituency.
11:13Therefore, what does that call for?
11:15That the government has to do the infrastructure.
11:17It's a bit expensive.
11:19Then when we come to the software, it is now that...
11:23Sorry, before we go to the software, the number of academies that are supposed to be in this country is
11:28290, which is the number of constituencies we have.
11:30So far, how many have been developed?
11:33Currently, we are at 37 that have been given an OK.
11:37And we have 32 already headed over to the sites.
11:43And I believe 15 can be used within this year if the rest are not yet completed.
11:50But the most important is not the hardware.
11:55Because as much as the hardware is being done, who is being targeted?
11:59It's the athlete.
12:00Where are they?
12:01You can't tell me you are waiting for a whole year to wait for that athlete to be available.
12:04So the government is working with the Minister of Education.
12:07Because as much as you are hearing these stories, this talent was there somewhere.
12:11And somebody was in custody of the talent when they were young.
12:15We see that talent is developed not beyond 20-something years.
12:19When you get there, you are old enough.
12:20You can now do the refereeing coaching or anything else.
12:27If you fail as an athlete, become a journalist.
12:31No.
12:31Basically, it is important for us to tell the sports people that the passion is there.
12:38But not always that all of them click.
12:40And not all of them reach the top.
12:42So because we are talking about the first point of contact with talent, where people are usually spotted, is schools,
12:48Tracy.
12:49Why are we not seeing our young under-17s competing with the people who are now joining the La Liga,
12:55Serie A's, Bundesliga?
12:56We do not have supporting structures to our talent.
13:00We lack the infrastructure.
13:02And when I say infrastructure, I don't mean just stadiums and this.
13:05I mean, an ecosystem that properly establishes this.
13:10Grace has mentioned that we have PE.
13:12And in Kenya, PE is a controversial subject.
13:16Physical education.
13:16Yes.
13:17So someone will be like, you don't need to go run.
13:19You need to focus more on your books.
13:21And even when they do go run, do we have systems in place?
13:24Are the teachers equipped to be able to spot talent, to be like, that child can sprint, that child plays
13:30football very well.
13:31And once they spot it, who do they report to?
13:33None of that infrastructure is in place currently.
13:36So if we don't start them off early with facilities, infrastructure, sports science, how do we expect them to compete
13:43internationally?
13:44Remember, like Joshua said, we only have amateur or semi-professional sports in this country.
13:50You can't go full professional because you need to find something else to get food on the table.
13:54So if we do not have that foundation from the very beginning, what does that mean?
13:58Even at the top, then there is nothing.
13:59We have a weak foundation, so we do not have talent at the top.
14:02Okay.
14:02So let me come back to Grace.
14:03Do you think that the Kenya education system is prioritizing or deprioritizing sports when you consider all the things that
14:09have been said?
14:10I think something is being done.
14:13That's not the question I asked.
14:14It is prioritizing.
14:15It is prioritizing.
14:16Even having sports being examinable is a plus to us.
14:22Having CBE, having a pathway specific for sports, it's a plus.
14:27Okay, but I have to push back a little bit here because you can learn the theory of sports.
14:31But if you don't have an Olympic-sized pool to compete in, then how can you possibly expect to be
14:38at the elite level?
14:38I can assure you we are better off than many other African countries.
14:42We start from somewhere.
14:43You would rather start crawling than not start at all.
14:47When you said that, Veronica shook her head so hard.
14:49No, we cannot continue clapping for cramps, and we know we can get better.
14:54Yeah.
14:55We know that our government can offer more, but people don't just take sports seriously.
15:00I think we should just stop clapping for cramps and make things work.
15:04Okay, so Tracy, when I hear all of these things, I wonder, where are the federations?
15:09Where are the clubs?
15:10You have organizations like FIFA.
15:13Shouldn't that money be filtering down to great athletes like they are here?
15:17There is a fund that actually comes down through federations through their international IFs,
15:23their international federations.
15:25It trickles down to the federations.
15:27Is it sufficient?
15:29Not necessarily.
15:30Not to be able to do all the heavy lifting of talent development.
15:34But there is also money that comes from government.
15:38Is it conclusively enough?
15:40Not enough.
15:41But what we are all not looking at, it's not, is government putting in enough?
15:47It should be, is government putting in enough in the right places?
15:51Okay, but even when they do put in money, I have to ask a question here.
15:55We've had so many cases of Kenyans being caught in scandals of age cheating, doping.
16:01Are we shooting ourselves in the foot here?
16:03I like that question because it is a real problem and we can't bury our heads in the
16:07sand to say that this is not happening.
16:09Why?
16:09Because sometimes the money can come to the federation, then there is mismanagement of
16:13the money, misappropriation, misdirection of the money.
16:17Maybe it was for this particular assignment, for these particular games, these particular
16:21competitions.
16:22Then it's directed somewhere else.
16:24Then there is the corruption as well because our federations are prone to that.
16:27That's a conversation that we have been having.
16:29Whether it is a little-known federation or it's a very well-known federation, there is
16:34the aspect of corruption in it.
16:36So when it comes to that point, the athlete is wondering, the only way that I can feed my
16:41family, the only way I can sustain myself, sometimes because of maybe lack of the discipline
16:45that comes with you, the accountability of being an athlete, you end up getting into
16:49doping, I mean, not doping scandals, into betting scandals, into those fishy-fishy kind
16:55of scandals.
16:56And at the end of the day, it's because you're trying to make ends meet.
16:59I'm not justifying the action, but it's because something somewhere in the federation or in
17:03the trickling of the money has been misdirected or mismanaged.
17:07Okay.
17:07But at the same time, it surprised me to read that Kenya only developed its anti-doping agency
17:13just literally 10 years ago.
17:14So for a country who has such a huge asset in sports, why not have regulations?
17:21I think because we're a reactive nation.
17:24And this happened because we were pushed to the edge.
17:27In 2016, the whole doping had gone out of control.
17:30We started having our first most recent cases in 2012.
17:34And they started by the time we were 2026, there were so many cases coming up.
17:37And that's why the anti-doping agency had to now be formally constituted.
17:41It has taken us 10 years, 10 years to be on our watch list every time because Kenya has
17:47a surplus of talents.
17:48We have so many people that monitoring them and especially individual games or individual
17:54sports like athletics, sometimes it becomes a problem.
17:57So all of these people, because they can't all represent the country in competitions, in
18:02national competitions, they will go into different competitions.
18:05You can hear a race maybe in South America somewhere.
18:08At the end of the day, because maybe they were not in the database, they were not monitored,
18:12they were not followed up, they end up into doping.
18:15They saw a loophole.
18:16So they get into doping.
18:17And as a result, every time the athletics integrity unit releases a list of dopers,
18:24there's a likelihood that there will be a Kenyan in that list.
18:27Okay.
18:27So, Ferdinand, in all fairness, very early on in your career, you were actually banned
18:32for several months because of this issue of doping.
18:34What happened?
18:37Start off at the gym.
18:38We were doing some work at the gym and at some point I got a disc dislocation.
18:43So it pinched on my nerve and the nerve that goes from the back to the toes.
18:49So at some point, two hours, three hours later, my whole left leg was numb.
18:53So we went to the hospital and talking to this doc, telling her everything that I'm an athlete,
18:59I have competitions coming up.
19:01So is this something that, you know, can be treated?
19:04And she said, yeah, I have medication.
19:07And she prescribed one of the medications was the D-PROFOS.
19:10A month later, tested, came back positive.
19:14So we had these cases and we handled the court case for quite a while.
19:19It took 12 months.
19:20I was banned for 14 months.
19:22Yeah.
19:22Yeah.
19:23So the ban was eventually lifted.
19:25But here we are a decade later discussing this.
19:28Do you think on your part, because when we spoke about this initially, I said,
19:31do you feel responsible for that?
19:32Because as an athlete, shouldn't you know what's getting into your system?
19:36But you see, this medication, I mean, like, we have a problem there
19:40because sometimes you get injured, you get sick, you walk into a hospital or maybe a chemist
19:47and you just get over-the-counter drugs, but then you don't realize that you're causing harm to yourself.
19:52But of course, you have to be responsible because you have to be responsible for what gets into your body.
19:57You can't start pointing fingers.
20:00The only thing now that we need to do is, like, how do we cover that loophole that we got
20:05there?
20:05Let me ask Grace's question because as an academy,
20:08I'm supposing these are some of the issues that you're bringing up, right?
20:11Is this something that is covered by the 280 million?
20:14Not really, but it's in one way covered by government in another arm of government
20:19through the doping agency of Kenya, whereby all athletes are supposed to undergo athlete education on doping.
20:26So why isn't it filtering down to the people who really need it?
20:31I think we got enough talent, but we have more than we have been able to provide for.
20:39Actually, you were telling me the number of games that are represented in Kenya.
20:42Tell us a little bit about that.
20:43Yeah, there are over 140 federations that have registered with the sports registrar in Kenya.
20:48And therefore, if each and every federation came forward and looking for support,
20:53an example of what has been given to maybe football and athletics,
20:58then you'll be sure that our budget for sports should be equaling what budget is going to roads,
21:05what is going to health.
21:07So before we come to some solutions, Tracy, I just want to introduce the issue of sexual and gender-based
21:13violence.
21:13It's no secret that our middle and long-distance running women are reporting that they are facing insane abuse.
21:20In fact, I think it was Aga Khan University who did a study,
21:23and it showed that 69% of the respondents said that they had endured abuse in the sport,
21:2855% of the people who did this being coaches and officials.
21:32That sounds very bleak.
21:35To be honest, as a country, we are failing at safeguarding our athletes.
21:40As you said, we have issues with doping, and sometimes it's a trust issue.
21:43The person who's actually giving you drugs is someone who's meant to be a trustworthy source.
21:48It's a parent, it's a coach, it's someone else.
21:51And unless this athlete has been taught from the get-go that this needs to be protected against,
21:57you need to read contacts to get someone you trust, you need to protect your image,
22:01you need to speak to the media in a particular way,
22:04there will always be issues around this.
22:06So we need to do more.
22:07And it's not only on the federation or the government to do this.
22:10Okay, so because you've already kicked us off on some solutions,
22:13Wanjiko, I'd like to come to you and find out,
22:15how do we make sure that 10 years from now,
22:18the Ferdinand Omondis are not waiting outside of a ministry like Veronica here to just get funding?
22:27That is expanding sports commercialization and sponsorship outside just thinking of the government.
22:33We need to think outside the box.
22:35We need to package our sports in a way that it shows the return of investment
22:40so that we are able to bring in like the corporates.
22:43We have banks that want to venture into sports.
22:46We have different kind of corporates that will want to venture into sports.
22:49But before then, how do we package the brand that we are selling?
22:53Is it something that will bring the return of investment?
22:56Is it something that has a longevity in it?
23:00And is it something that shows accountability?
23:02Because without accountability,
23:04then nobody will come and support this particular product that we are building around.
23:08So from within, we have to work from our federations,
23:12the ecosystem around it, the corporates around it.
23:16And we need to deal with corruption as a whole, not just in sport.
23:21Corruption and misappropriation of funds.
23:25So Josh, coming back to solutions,
23:27what do we do to ensure that Kenya goes back in its heyday
23:30of being named in the same breath as New Zealand, Samoa, Australia when it comes to rugby?
23:36Wow.
23:38There's a lot to be done.
23:40And I think we're taking steps in the right direction.
23:44Take the Sevens, for example.
23:46Local coaches, do you know what I mean?
23:47Like people who played on the team are now leading the team.
23:50And they're leading the team quite well.
23:51Yeah, props have to be given to that.
23:55Our governing body, do you know what I mean?
23:57Like I don't know what's going on in there, so I can't really speak to that.
24:00But I think that's where, that's everything.
24:04Because we can count on the government to do everything for us.
24:07Some of the things we have to do for ourselves.
24:09And then whatever comes from them is a supplement.
24:11Because after all, we live in Kenya.
24:13Yeah.
24:13All right.
24:13We help yourself out and then the rest will happen.
24:16Okay.
24:17I think the effort that the players put in should be reciprocated by the people in charge.
24:23All right.
24:23So I'll get one closing remark here before we close with Ferdinand.
24:28Actually, is corruption killing our game?
24:30Yes.
24:31Through maybe the federations or the sports bodies that we have.
24:35Actually, if you have the right governing bodies for sports, money is maybe allocated for it.
24:41But if it's not well spent or the books are not right, like corporate companies or sporting companies that may
24:51come to support the sports.
24:52And if they check the books that are not right, they will pull out.
24:55But if we keep our books right, audit is right, I know companies will come in, corporates will come in
25:02to support the sports.
25:03And fans will also come and support also the players.
25:06And the game will go back to where it was.
25:08Okay.
25:08So I'm hearing a lot of that leadership structures.
25:11But Ferdinand, I'd like to wrap with you.
25:13Olympics 2028, you have an ambition to best your current record.
25:19What can we expect from you?
25:20Yeah, that's right.
25:22My goal, I've won everything else, be it the Diamond Leagues, the Commonwealth Games, African Championships.
25:28I haven't won a World Championship medal or an Olympic medal.
25:31So that's my goal for the next two seasons.
25:33I think after I've achieved that, hopefully we get to host the World Championships in 2029.
25:38I'll push myself to that.
25:39But again, that's the goal for the next two seasons.
25:41Okay.
25:42And I think that goal actually answers the question that we had.
25:44What are the medals hiding?
25:46Well, a lot more ambition, a lot of raw talent.
25:49But as we've heard, it's simply not enough.
25:52What can be done?
25:53Well, we've heard it already from all the people behind me.
25:55And I've learned so much.
25:56Thank you guys for joining us.
25:58From me here in Nairobi, it's bye-bye.
25:59Bye.
26:00Bye.
26:06Sweet.
26:07Bye.
26:09Bye.