Kenyan teams arrive in Fort Portal ready for competition

• Rwandan rivals are still a big headache even as players and coaches optimistic

To cover more than 1,000 kilometres by road in less than 30 hours can be a taxing affair to many. Not to mention being among a contingent of more 700 people being cleared at a slow and relaxed Busia border post.

One would expect the 549 students and over 150 officials and coaches on their way to the annual East Africa Schools Games in Fort Portal, Uganda, to feel the effects of the journey, but that was not the case as they chatted animatedly among themselves.

“Manze Uganda si ni kupoa! Hungesema ni kufit hivyo… (Uganda is such a good place, one wouldn’t have thought it’s that nice),” one of the students whispered to her friend, who just nodded, swamped in trepidation especially after crossing the great River Nile.

Going to a foreign country is not a usual thing and, as Mitchelle Oyoo, a handball player and student at Matuu Memorial High School, puts it, “It’s a lifetime achievement.”

Most Valuable Player

Although this is not the first time Oyoo is making an international trip, this one is different.

She said: “I was in Rwanda last year for the same games and I can tell you for a fact that this year’s trip makes me feel awesome.”

Apart from helping her school win the handball trophy in Rwanda, the 17-year-old was also voted the Most Valuable Player at the week-long games. And she hopes to come in handy for Matuu when they play their first match on Monday morning.

“We can’t wait to start defending our trophy. To win it for the second time in a row will certainly be a big achievement for us and the country at large because when a Kenyan school wins it’s joy for all of us,” said the form two student.

It will certainly be an achievement for Matuu Memorial if they win, judging from their location, along the vast Yatta Plateau and conditions that the students train in.

But the school has refused to ‘die a natural death’ in sports, and this has seen them win the national title twice – in 2003 and 2006 – and the East Africa games in as many times (2006 and 2008).

“The players are focused and they train hard on this sport. From the team we had last year, we have only lost three players, who finished form four,” the team’s head coach, Alex Malei, pointed out.

Just like his counterparts in basketball, Malei is apprehensive of the Rwandan teams.

“You see, in Rwanda most schools and colleges are the same and have just one team. Now this is where they have the upper hand. We have met with some teams from Rwanda in several tournaments, so we know their ability,” he said.

Prepared for challenge

The head coach did not entirely rule out the ability of teams from the other five countries, and he said his team is prepared for any challenge.

“It would be a great thing to face a Kenyan team in the final, as this would mean that the trophy will come back to Kenya,” Malei said.

The Kenyan team finally arrived at the Kyevamba Girls School in Fort Portal, and for the next two days they are expected to acclimatise before the games start on Sunday afternoon.

The Kenyan team will defend titles in eight disciplines as they try to capture the boys’ football trophy last won by St Anthony at the regional games’ inaugural edition in 2002.

Defend and win titles

Speaking upon arrival here, the Kenya Secondary School Sports Association patron, Enos Oyaya, hailed the Kenyan champions and urged them to successfully defend their titles as well as win in other categories.

“It feels great to have such a big number here, and I hope you’ll be able to defend your titles and make the country proud. It’s my wish, too, that we win in every category in which we are represented,” said Oyaya, who is also the director of quality assurance in the Ministry of Education.