Like athletes, let's export our footballers

      OSAKA, JAPAN - SEPTEMBER 02: Bernard Lagat of the United States of America celebrates winning the Men's 5,000m Final on day nine of the 11th IAAF World Athletics Championships on September 2, 2007 at the Nagai Stadium in Osaka, Japan. (Photo by Ian Walton/Getty Images) *** Local Caption *** Bernard Lagat

In one of my articles in July this year, I urged ambitious Kenyan footballers to think seriously about taking up foreign citizenship.

I recently stumbled upon television coverage of the recent IAAF continental races in Marrakesh, Morocco.

The competition pitted athletes representing various continents. When the list for the 3,000 metres race came up on the screen, I assumed Benson Kiplagat Seurei was representing Africa, courtesy of Kenya.

But on closer look, I realised he was actually appearing for Asia & Pacific. The commentator confirmed this by revealing that the athlete was from Bahrain. This reminded me of the time Dennis Oliech was offered loads of cash to abandon Kenya and take Qatari citizenship. He declined and came back into the waiting arms of our FKF with all its baggage.

Musa Otieno is back from South Africa after a brilliant career with Sanlam Santos of Cape Town. He was recently appointed assistant coach to deputise Bobby Williamson, who is now Harambee Stars' head coach. His return portrays a sense of patriotism. However, with FKF as his boss, we can only wish him well, and hope that what he sees is what he gets.

Wilson Kosgei Kipketer, the famous 800 metres athlete who was born on December 12, 1972 is a true Kenyan legend who was not only undefeated for three years, but also dominated the 800 metres for 10 years. He held a world record that stood for 13 years, until it was broken by David Rudisha in August 2010. Rudisha managed to shave off 0.02 seconds from the previous record to a new time of 1:41:09.

Although Kipketer never won an Olympic medal, he made his money and retired in 2005. Earlier, after marrying a Danish citizen, he had the option of choosing to remain Kenyan or taking up foreign citizenship. He opted for Danish citizenship and retired in the tax haven of Monaco.

This issue of retirement is important because many Kenyan sports careers have been cut short and dreams shattered after neglect following injuries in the line of duty for club or country. Notable cases include Arthur Okwemba, who broke his leg in a 1972 AFCON qualifier encounter with the Cameroonians.

That was the end of his career. Was he insured or compensated in any way? I don't know, but I highly doubt it. The only sure thing for him was his employment at the then Kenya Breweries to fall back on.

One of the best soccer defenders not to have played for long was Nick Okoth, who joined Gor from Black Mamba in 1982. Nick was a rising star and part of Len Julians' dream team. One night, during a floodlit match between Gor and Imara, he was knocked by an opponent, leading to a broken leg. Nick never played football again. Of course there was no medical cover, and no compensation.

While Seurei may not be well known in athletics circles, I am sure that when he gets injured as a Bahrain national, someone will take care of his medical expenses.

Recently, rugby star Humphrey Kayange was injured during the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow. We all know him as a brand and Kenya's poster boy, whose image appears in numerous billboards. Kenyans in the diaspora easily identify with the Kenyan 7s rugby team due to the exploits of the squad that includes Kanyange's brother Collins. The team's success has been used to brand Kenya as a sports tourism destination.

Humphrey's injury jolted us back to the realisation that he was but a Kenyan sportsman. With no medical insurance or any agreement to cover medical expenses, poor Humphrey was tossed up and down to chase shadows like was the case with Gor's Solomon Nasio. It is only after Humphrey twisted his ankle that the Kenyan entourage realised that NOCK had no medical cover for the garland athletes.

When I asked my friend Abirry Wuoche Gweno about the non-existent or hollow medical cover in most sports disciplines, he told me a story about his tour of a tea factory as a primary school pupil at Michinda Boarding School.

He discovered that tea sold in shops near his home was of inferior quality, and that the best grade was exported overseas.

Abirry suggests that football clubs should have two sets of teams, one for the local league and Harambee Stars, and a 'For Export Only' pool that should not dabble in local matches, lest they get injured and dumped.

Our 'export quality' players should not be treated like those for 'local consumption.'

Even as we wish Humphrey quick recovery, we cant help but wonder how he came to suffer a fate akin to those that are commonplace at City Stadium, where the word 'insurance' only invokes the name of a building?!