By SEAN CARDOVILLIS

 

KENYA: Paul Treu urged Kenyans to be patient in his maiden press conference when he was unveiled as the Kenya national sevens rugby coach early in November.

Kenya’s performances in Dubai last weekend suggested that it will take time for the new technical bench to get the team in the form they’ll be happy with, with flashes of brilliance mixed with frustrating performances against the mights of New Zealand and Treu’s former team South Africa.

We have to face the harsh reality that until the sport here turns fully professional, it will be tough to haul the team up to the levels of New Zealand, Fiji, South Africa and England, whom are investing millions of dollars in the hopes of grabbing that maiden Olympic gold medal in Rio 2016.

Treu is still looking to see which players will form his strongest squad, but if outside commitments keep preventing players from making various tournaments, then it will be difficult for him to work out what strategies and tactics to use in the tournaments, along with what is his strongest possible team. Consistency is the key!

Duncan proves

The 52-year-old Ian Duncan proved that there’s no end in site to his illustrious career, by beating the might of the Tuthill prepared Porsches and other big-budget Europe-based entries in dramatic fashion, in what was a spectacular 2013 Kenya Airways East African Classic Safari Rally.

Duncan was low on budget ahead of the rally, and it was feared that the Europe-based teams were letting him lead so that his equipment would be tested and cause him problems later in the rally.

However it was just punctures that slowed him down, which he attributed to possible wrong tyre selections in various stages, and in the end his Ford Capri behaved impeccably to give him his second title in four years.

Duncan and co-driver Amaar Slatch will be back in 2014 to compete in the KCB Kenya National Rally Championship, along with other four and two wheel off-road events.

Young swimmers dream

Just weeks after talking about young sensation Danielle Awori, Kenya’s swimmers rocked Lusaka, Zambia at the African Junior Championships last week.

Micah Fernandes, 15, dominated the breaststroke categories – breaking the Africa junior record in the 200 metres with a time of 2 minutes 22.89 seconds, which qualifies him through a ‘B’ time to compete at the Youth Olympics in Nanjing, China in August next year at that distance.

Fernandes also claimed gold in the 100 metres and a bronze in the 50 metres.

Fernandes is based at the High Performance Centre in Pretoria, South Africa, which is connected with his high school TUKS.

As for 15-year-old Awori, she failed to win an individual title, but broke an astonishing six Kenya national records, whilst her age mate  national teammate Emily Muteti  won two silver medals. Look out for these two girls in the future!

Planes, Bikes and Cycling

There are three events of sporting significance over the long Jamhuri weekend:

On Jamhuri Day, bikers will gather at the Junction shopping mall for the Freedom Ride, the largest gathering of motocycle enthusiasts in East And Central Africa, and the ride will head towards the Tanzania border after doing a lap of the city.

Next Saturday and Sunday is the Tusker Air Show Festival at Wilson Airport, which will feature private and military planes and helicopters on display, fly-pasts, skydiving, along with a whole host of entertainment for adults and children.

If planes are not your thing, then you can head to the extraordinary Tafaria Castle And Country Lodge for the inaugural X-Knights BMX Challenge between Friday and Sunday next week.

BMX is an Olympic sport, and organiser Nick Patel has taken advantage of the lack of foresight by Kenya Cycling Federation boss Julius Mwangi and co by building Kenya’s first permanent BMX track, which has been in the planning for last few years – and apart from BMX, there will be a mountain bike challenge, quad-bikes, a bush camp, bonfire party and other activities to keep young and old occupied.   

Let’s hope Patel’s bold initiative bears fruit in the long-term, as Kenya has proven through David Kinjah that the country can produce world-class cyclists led by reigning Tour De France champion Chris Froome.

— The writer is a sport journalist and runs a consulting firm.

–– sean@seancardovillis.co.ke