Moim optimistic as Kenya given bye in preliminaries of qualifiers

Kenya’s Mercy Moim (centre) dives for the ball against Senegal during the African qualifiers for the 2014 FIVB World Championships at Safaricom Stadium, Kasarani, on February 19. Kenya has been exempted from the preliminary stages of 2016 Olympics qualifiers. FILE PHOTO | MARTIN MUKANGU | NATION MEDIA GROUP

What you need to know:

  • Moim has said the decision will give Kenya enough time to prepare adequately as the team seeks to clinch the only ticket reserved for Africa at the 2016 games in Rio de Janeiro.
  • Kenya, the top ranked women’s team in Africa, has been give a bye to the final phase of the qualifiers set to commence in January 2016 on the strength of recent performances. Cameroon and Tunisia have also been given a bye.
  • The three teams will be joined in the final phase of African qualifiers by another 13 teams from seven zones in Africa in the quest for a single slot given to the continent by the International Olympic Committee.

Finland-based Kenyan volleyball star Mercy Moim says she is happy with the decision by the African Volleyball Federation (CAVB) to exempt the national women’s team from the preliminaries of the 2016 Olympic qualifiers.

Moim has said the decision will give Kenya enough time to prepare adequately as the team seeks to clinch the only ticket reserved for Africa at the 2016 games in Rio de Janeiro.

Kenya, the top ranked women’s team in Africa, has been give a bye to the final phase of the qualifiers set to commence in January 2016 on the strength of recent performances. Cameroon and Tunisia have also been given a bye.

The three teams will be joined in the final phase of African qualifiers by another 13 teams from seven zones in Africa in the quest for a single slot given to the continent by the International Olympic Committee.

“I believe the organizers considered our busy schedule next year (in arriving at this decision), which is a welcome move. But we must prepare well because earning the Africa’s single slot to the Olympics at the expense of the other teams will not be easy,” the Liiga Ploki right attacker told Daily Nation Sport from Finland yesterday.

Kenya is seeking to wrestle Africa’s only slot for the Olympics from Algeria, who competed in the 2012 London Games. Kenya Volleyball Federation chairman Waithaka Kioni has said Kenya is targeting an Olympics slot and to reclaim the World Championships ticket as well as making it to the World Cup in the next two years.

The national women’s team will also be competing in the All Africa Games qualifiers, Africa Cup of Nations, World Cup qualifiers and the 2014 Junior women’s African Nations Championship in the course of next year.