Kamariny coming up from scratch

You must have read the Aesop’s fable of the boy who cried wolf. If you didn’t, I have no idea where you have been!

But, in a nutshell, it’s a fable about a shepherd boy who kept deceiving villagers that his flock had been attacked by a wolf.

The villagers kept falling for the ruse, but when the actual wolf did show up one day, his cries of “wolf, wolf” were met with deaf village years.

And the wolf had a party, gobbling up the sheep.

Quite the tale at Iten’s Kamariny Stadium.

Leader after leader has been promising to renovate the iconic ground that was launched in 1952 by Queen Elizabeth, and which has produced an avalanche of world champions, including 800 metres world record holder David Rudisha.

From MCAs to MPs, Governor, successive Cabinet Secretaries have vowed to revamp the stadium, with the Jubilee Government listing them on their “list of priorities” in their pre-elections pledge.

But nothing has been done at the ground ever since, with local athletes resigning themselves to fate, considering it a cursed ground.

So when Sports Chief Administrative Secretary Hassan Noor Hassan and Sports Kenya Director General Pius Metto recently visited the iconic venue and promised a revamp, the athlete simply laughed them off as crying “wolf.”

But it would appear that the real “wolf” have finally showed up, with heavy machinery and heightened activity at the stadium an indication that there’s, finally, light at the end of the tunnel.

The works at the famous stadium in Elgeyo-Marakwet County had stalled in 2017, offering little hope to the athletes.

But last week, Metto asked Funan Construction Company, who have been handed the renovations contract, to speed up the works after signing a memorandum of understanding on how they will complete the facility within the shortest time possible.

This was after another high profile official from Hassan who promised to push for it’s completion within a short period.

Speaking when he inspected the facility last month, Hassan said the government is committed to providing adequate facilities to sportsmen and women who have tirelessly continued to fly the country’s flag across the globe.

“We have a reliable funding from the national government and we hope to complete the remaining construction works at Kamariny in the shortest time possible because the athletes who have been using the project are suffering and that should not be the case,” he said.

When Nation Sport visited the facility on Monday evening, work was in progress with an excavator on one side and other workers concentrating on the drainage system despite the harsh weather that has always been associated with the high altitude.

There are also mounds of soil on the football pitch which will be levelled before the contractor plants grass of Fifa standards.

According to the site engineer Kevin Kiptoo, more machines are expected this week so that they can hasten the works as they work towards beating the deadline.

"We are now focusing on the facility and we have mobilised the whole team so that we can deliver on time after the government signed a memorandum on how to finish the stadium. We have a lot of pressure but I know we shall deliver a good facility,” said Kiptoo.

He said that the works include building of VIP pavillion, levelling and planting grass on the pitch and finishing the terraces built by the county government.

"In the next three weeks we shall have progressed well and our main aim is to finish the pitch and track base where the tartan track will be laid maybe later," said the engineer.

Mark Kiprono, a marathoner was in the stadium very early in the morning to see if the works had really started.

He was hoping it wasn’t the little boy crying “wolf” again.

He said athletes in the region have been suffering for lack of good facilities and they have been using roads for their speed work sessions.

"I wanted to see if it's true the works have started and I'm happy something positive is coming up.

“We have suffered so much as athletes because we don't have a place to train, especially the speed work sessions which we have been doing along the roads," said Kiprono.