Is it another empty promise to construct Kamariny Stadium?

Athletes from various training camps in Iten town train at Kamariny stadium in Elgeyo Marakwet County. April 16, 2025. [Peter Ochieng, Standard]

There are still fears that Kamariny, a stadium with a rich history in Kenya's athletics development will remain a centre of false promises.

After producing innumerable world beaters in athletics including 800m world record holder David Rudisha and Kenyan-born Qatari Saif Shaheen (born Stephen Cherono), who held the men's 3000m steeplechase world record for 19 years since 2004, Kamariny, the athletics fraternity shouldn't be a theatre of jinxes.

British greats such as former women's marathon world record holder Paula Radcliffe and Sir Mo Farah, a four-time Olympic champion among other global icons trusted Kamariny Stadium for their training, but that was before it was demolished in 2016 for an upgrade. It has stalled since then.

All Kenya's Sports Cabinet Secretaries (save for Salim Mvurya) and Principal Secretaries who have served since October 2016 have visited the stalling stadium and made pledges to complete the facility.

Onboard their high-end government vehicles, several technical officials from the Ministry of Sports and Sports Kenya, the agency implementing sports infrastructure projects, have visited the high altitude training facilities countless times.

On Monday, the iconic high altitude training facility was a host to another team of technical officials from the Ministry of Sports and a contractor.

Armed with a new design that will see Kamariny being upgraded to a training centre, and not a state-of-the-art stadium as promised in 2016, the team, which declined to speak to the press, said the contractor will commence construction in ten days from Monday May 12.

Elgeyo Marakwet Deputy Governor Grace Cheserek who accompanied the technical team assured athletes that two training grounds, one in the neighbouring Kiptungo and another in Kipsoen will be ready for training as soon as the contractor takes back the site.

"We assure our athletes that we have two alternative training grounds for use when the site is closed for construction," Cheserek told Standard Sports.

She went on to say:"We are hopeful that this time, the project will commence and be completed within the timelines."

Speaking on November 14, 2023 during an inspection tour, in the company of Interior Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen, who was then at Roads as well as Elgeyo Marakwet Governor Wisley Rotich and former Sports CS Ababu Namwamba said plans to complete the stadium were at an advanced stage.

''We are going to do Kamariny in a bigger way than before. We are constructing a modern training facility which will be established around the stadium so that we will have a stadium and a training center around the same facility," Ababu promised during his November 2023 visit.

But the Sports Kenya technical team, during their inspection on Monday told the contractor to prioritise the track and field facilities, and that other components such as terraces would follow.

The stalled Kamariny Stadium on Monday May 12, 2025. A technical team promised that a new contractor will commence work in 10 days. [Stephen Rutto, Standard]

There was also another promise during Ababu's reign. An Iten sports ground was to be upgraded to standards that would support training of the hundreds of athletics stars in the high altitude training base.

Ababu's promises, just like those of his predecessors are also yet pass.

In January 2021, former Sports CS Amina Mohamed made her final pledge - she said work at Kamariny Stadium was set to resume.

Amina said during a visit to Iten that a new contractor would be identified to speed up works at the stalled stadium.

She said a process to identify a new contractor to complete works at the stadium would be carried out in a month's time.

According to Amina, the stadium was to be made ready to be used by athletes who were getting ready for the postponed Tokyo Olympic Games that year, but the promise remains unfulfilled four years later.

Athletes who continue training in Kamariny said the latest promise will only be believed when works are complete.

Sh280 million had been budgeted for Kamariny upgrade before the initial contract was cancelled in 2020.

Elgeyo Marakwet County had constructed terraces that cost Sh50 million (according to an auditor general report).