Atlanta 1996: When an athlete held Kipchoge Keino by the throat

I was lucky to observe how powerful, reckless and mean the National Olympic Committee of Kenya (NOC-K) officials can be in the 1996 Atlanta Olympic Games.

I sniffed the first feel of NOC-K power after applying for the USA Visa through the Kenyan contingent, which was stamped with a five-year stamp without me stepping into the US Embassy.

As I came to learn later and even with similar excursions for cities organising major Games, host countries of go out of their way even to bend rules to please and accommodate many.

But there was a hitch, I had not applied for accreditation and therefore could not access any of the competition venues, actually worse off than coach John Anzrah, who managed to sneak into the Games Village.

I was either going to pay to watch the Games, which was far out of my pocket, or watch from television. My only savior, according to the Games media liaison officer, was my NOC-K President or secretary-general. I opted for the President, Charles Mukora, who was living at the IOC Family Hotel Algonquin.

The biggest problem was that I needed accreditation to enter the premises, which was guarded like a palace. Or hang around but far away from the glare of the heavily armed US Marines and the real ones built like tanks, and hope Charlie, as friends call him, would appear. Luckily, I had a phone.

Charlie walked the street and fetched me and over a cup of coffee at the balcony, I explained to him my problem. With a wave of hand, an aide, a very beautiful woman wearing two guns on hot pants, actually a Marilyn Munroe lookalike, and a senior official, was reached.

They did a quick application form and had time to catch up on a few things. We caught then Cabinet Minister Nyiva Mwenda, accompanied by a Kenyan aide, cross the road. As to where they were going we didn’t know.

Soon, Charlie was to attend to some business and I watched in awe as the Munroe lookalike was joined by an equally fragile lady driver, the sort that make the heart of an elderly man hum, who was the official drive zoom off with Charlie in a limo.

That evening Charlie, as a member of the IOC, sat in the bullet proof presidential box at the Olympic Stadium together with President Bill Clinton, USA government VVIPs including Heads of State from across the globe for the opening ceremony. Mwenda, who was a powerful Cabinet minister, was nowhere near the presidential or main stand.

That is how successive government officials have been humbled by NOC-K official. Charlie was a diplomat and laid back as NOC-K chairman. So is Kipchoge Keino. But his departure in 1998 following Salt Lake City bribery scandal opened NOC-K to a certain level of leadership which has continued to blunder since.

Since then, NOC-K gains public relevance after every two years during the Olympic Games and All Africa Games. This is a body which is notorious for making everybody feel small, partly on purpose and partly because of the high profile of these Games.

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) considers its affiliated bodies or NOC-K as family and everybody else illegitimate, including governments. The bloated egos of these small timers, many unemployed but close to a hefty kitty and IOC junkets is not misplaced. They are certainly spoilt children.

That is why they can mastermind the Rio heist of public funds by taking their children, spouses, concubines and friends for all expense paid trip to wallow in the luxury of Copacabana beaches without a care. In those Games, while in Nairobi, Kipchoge Keino was appointed Chef de Mission.

The same night after the trials, athletes mutinied and travelled to Europe for the Grand Prix series without informing Kip, who was furious. Kip struck back against officials he suspected had aided the athletes skip camp at the airport by denying former Athletics Kenya vice president David Okeyo and Sports Ministry executive officer Earnest Kaitany from travelling.

Okeyo lost his cool and called Kip a few nasty names while Kaitanyi, in full ceremonial uniform, broke down crying. This didn’t move Kip, who promised unspecified action against the athletes. He kept his threat by instructing the finance officer to withhold their allowances.

The matter reached boiling point after a few days in the Village when five athletes confronted Kip and, after a short quarrel, one held the old man by the throat and the other gave him a karate sweep knocking him backward. Coach Dan Muchoki had to come to Kip’s rescue.

Kenya performed dismally, winning only one gold medal. Atlanta marked the beginning of run-ins between NOC-K and athletes. In 2004, boxer Peter Munyasia showed another ugly side after being sent back home for chewing miraa, which is a banned substances.

NOC-K’s problems with athletes have always been over training venues. The joy riders insist on travelling early to justify the Sh1 million allowances. Athletes insist on training at home.

When this fails, Kenya performs poorly like in Barcelona (1992), Atlanta (1996), Sydney (2000), Athens (2004), London (2012) and now Rio.