Ruto: State pledge on stadia on track

Engineers from Mondo Company lay tartan track at Eldoret’s Kipchoge Keino Stadium on November 13, 2014. The government has said it has budgeted for similar upgrading of sporting venues in other counties with the projects set to roll out soon. PHOTO | COPPERFIELD LAGAT |

What you need to know:

  • Government lauds development of National Sports Academy in Nairobi
  • The Deputy President said the implementation of the Sports Act 2013 would pave the way for development of Kenyan sports across the board.
  • Kenya has been chosen to host the 2017 IAAF World Youth Championships and the 2018 Africa Nations Championships (CHAN)

The Government is confident it will deliver on its pre-election pledges for sports with projects in sports funding, development of a sports academy and infrastructure upgrading already underway, Deputy President William Ruto has assured.

The Deputy President said the implementation of the Sports Act 2013 would pave the way for development of Kenyan sports across the board.

“In pushing the law, we were trying to expand the whole sports horizon, complete with a Sports Lottery that would raise money for the purposes of funding sports activities so that it (funding) is not only left to government and other sponsors,” Ruto said in Eldoret on Christmas Eve.

UPGRADING TRACKS

In their pre-election manifesto, the Jubilee coalition said they would build five new stadiums in Kisumu, Mombasa, Nakuru, Eldoret and Garissa while upgrading existing facilities at county level to accommodate more sporting disciplines such as swimming and tennis.

Ruto said they were already working on improving and upgrading the already-budgeted-for facilities before taking the next step of building new venues.

“We intend to see more sports stadia coming up so that there are more facilities for people to train,” he said.

“We are upgrading tracks like the one here in Eldoret (Kipchoge Keino Stadium) and others that were already budgeted for. We are now working with county governments to roll out the others.”

Ruto noted that he was impressed with the development of the National Sports Academy in Nairobi.

“The Sports Academy is almost ready and we put in money to complete it this financial year and it will take in talented students who, as they attend school, they can also develop their careers in sports, not only in athletics and football, but in other sports as well,” Ruto said.

He added that the new legislation would pave way for the flawless funding of sports.

“Now that the law was passed, we should be completing the assembly of the Sports Lottery and all other departments that are necessary for the development of sports in this country,” said Ruto, a self-confessed Arsenal fan.

Jubilee also pledged in their manifesto to bid to host major sporting competitions.

Already, Kenya has been chosen to host the 2017 IAAF World Youth Championships and the 2018 Africa Nations Championships (CHAN), which is a football tournament along the lines of the Africa Cup of Nations but only open to players plying their trade within their home countries.