Nandi coaches sharpen skills

More than 100 coaches from Nandi County have begun a five-day intensive training, under the Kenya Academy of Sports (KAS), even as the government steps up its grassroots talent development programme, ahead of the Mashujaa Day celebrations.

The training, organised by the Ministry of Sports through KAS, targets 30 football coaches, 60 volleyball coaches and 60 athletics coaches drawn from across the county.

KAS Director of Research John Okwemba said the programme is designed to equip local coaches with modern techniques to nurture youth talent, with a focus on under-17 players who often drop out after school due to lack of structured training.

“We are nurturing young talent under 17 because we realised that most of them, when they leave school, don’t have somewhere to hone their skills,” Okwemba said.

He disclosed that the government has so far established 37 sports academies countrywide, noting that coaches undergoing training stand a chance of being recruited to train in the academies.

“Those of you being trained here today will have an opportunity to be scouted to go and teach in the academies we have established,” he said, adding that the academies offer a pathway for young athletes to realise their dreams of playing in elite leagues.

The Nandi training comes as three North Rift counties gear up to host inter-county tournaments lined up to mark this year’s Mashujaa Day fete to be held at Kipchoge Keino Stadium in Uasin Gishu county.

Nandi County Commissioner Wilberforce Kilonzo said Nandi will host volleyball, Uasin Gishu football and Elgeyo Marakwet’s marathon as part of the celebrations.

Koitalel University in Nandi will host the volleyball finals, while the football finals will be played in Eldoret immediately after the President’s Mashujaa Day address.

Elgeyo Marakwet will host a marathon slated for October 19, which is expected to attract top long-distance runners from the region.

The KAS initiative is part of a broader government strategy to decentralise sports development, strengthen talent identification at the county level and create a seamless transition for young sports talent from school to elite competition.

By Kosuri Valarie