Kibaki boosts Kenya’s Olympic spirit with cash rewards

Kenya’s Olympians braved a two-and-a-half wait for President Mwai Kibaki at State House, Nairobi, Monday, but when the Head of State finally arrived for the official Beijing Olympics send-off ceremony, the athletes found the wait worth the while.

The President emerged with a bagful of incentives that he and many observers believe will spur the athletes on to podium places at next month’s Olympic Games.

Kibaki more than doubled the reward for the gold medallists, offering Sh750,000 for winners in Beijing, a big increase from the previous reward for Olympic champions that stood at Sh300,000.
Silver medallists will pocket Sh500,000 while bronze medal winners will take home Sh250,000, up from the previous Sh300,000 and Sh200,000 respectively.

Monday’s ceremony at Nairobi’s State House was pencilled for 10.00 am but only started at 12.30 pm but the athletes and officials had no regrets when they headed back to their pre-Olympics camp at Kasarani.

“I have increased the awards. This is aimed at enhancing excellence in the team and making the athletes feel rewarded for their effort in flying high our country’s flag,” Kibaki said.

“Since 1956 when Kenya took part in its first Olympics, names like Kipchoge Keino, Paul Tergat, Robert Wangila, Catherine Ndereba and Naftali Temu have been echoed severally signifying Kenya’s prowess in sports,” the President said.

The new incentive scheme was applauded by the athletes and officials with the overall team captain, 800 metres runner Wilfred Bungei, saying it will go a long way in influencing competition against the other countries in Beijing.

National Olympic Committee of Kenya chairman, Kipchoge Keino, said the defection of athletes to the Gulf and other countries had reduced since the government introduced a reward system and institutionalised it.

With the new scheme in force, the athletes now have more reason to sacrifice and battle to have the national anthem played at the major international meetings, the former Olympic champion noted.

“I must thank your government for the support you are giving our athletes and youths. Since this programme was started, we have seen the migration of our talented athletes cut down,” the track legend, also a member of the International Olympic Committee, told the President.

Kibaki also announced far reaching programmes to revamp the sports industry to provide lucrative career opportunities to sportsmen and women in the country.

He revealed that plans to establish an International Sports Academy as a flagship project under the Vision 2030 were underway in order to prepare athletes to cope with the ever-increasing demand for excellence and offer specialised training for the local athletes.

Other measures unveiled to promote sports include establishment of a National Sports Lottery to generate funds to drive various sports programmes in all parts of the country an initiative the President directed the concerned ministry to give top priority.

Constituency sports fund

The government has also directed the ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports to ensure that the recently allocated 210 million shillings for constituency sports development was efficiently utilised to tap and nurture more talent.