Kabaddi: Government has failed to promote the sport

Kabaddi is a sport that originated approximately 4,000 years ago from India and it was introduced in the country in the year 2012.

The first year it participated in World Cup Championship at Punjab India, making the new sport grow rapidly in Kenya.

Below, is a fact sheet about the game taking Kenyans by storm.

Teams are made up of seven players, who take it in turns to ‘raid’(tackle) the opponent’s side of the court. The raider’s aim is to tag an opponent and make it back into his or her territory safely without being wrestled to the ground.

The intriguing part is: raiders must hold their breath while in opposition territory. They ought to chant the word kabaddi to prove they are not breathing in.

Kabaddi, which is very popular in many parts of Southern Asia, has over the years spread across the world.

According to Kenya Association of Kabaddi, the sport was introduced in Kenya five years ago and the sport is gaining tremendous acceptance among the native Kenyan communities.

The sport is not only now concentrated in Nairobi, but also to other major towns like Bungoma, Kakamega, Meru, Kisii, Kilifi, Mombasa, Nyamira just to mention a few.

At the moment, over 500 players actively participate in the sport.

Despite government’s minimal support for the game our both men and women Kabaddi teams represented Kenya in the Kabaddi World Cup held in India, October last year.

It was the first time ever for Kenya to participate in the tournament. Men’s team emerged seventh whilst their counterparts did exemplary well clinching the fourth position overall out of 12 nations.

KAK is urging the Ministry of Sports, Arts and Culture to come out to support and help the sport grow. Needless to say, like any other sport- potential sponsors out there are urged to turn up and drum up any form of support requisite for this course.

Our Kenya Kabaddi Team has been invited to the Africa Championships in Mauritius, on 18th and 19th March for their outstanding and impressive performance at the 2016 Kabaddi World Cup.

It is shameful that there are no funds to cater for this hence, prompting KAK management result to a fundraiser via M-Pesa! Where is CS Hassan Wario?