Athletics Kenya

Last updated

Athletics Kenya (AK) is the governing body for the sport of athletics (track and field) in Kenya. It is a member of World Athletics and Confederation of African Athletics. AK organises athletics competitions held in Kenya. It also sends Kenyan teams to international championships. Jackson Tuwei is the current chairman of Athletics Kenya. AK is headquartered in Riadha House, next to Nyayo National Stadium, Nairobi.

Contents

History

Kenya Amateur Athletics Association

Athletics (track and field) in Kenya was governed by an organization known as Kenya Amateur Athletics Association (KAAA) from 1951 until 2002 when the organization changed the name to Athletics Kenya (AK). Archie Evans is credited for starting organized athletics and forming Kenya Amateur Athletics Association (KAAA) in 1951. [1] Evans became the secretary of the newly formed KAAA and Derek Erskine became its first chairman. [2] The association was formed as a requirement in any country wishing to send athletes to international competitions, especially the British Empire and Commonwealth Games.

Following the formation of KAAA, Kenya was represented for the first time in the 5th edition of British Empire and Commonwealth Games in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada in 1954 and subsequent championships. [3] The association changed its name to Athletics Kenya (AK) in 2002, the current governing body of the sport of athletics in Kenya. [4] [5]

Athletics Kenya

Kenya is a powerful nation in Athletics, but the talent is limited to long and middle distance running. Famous Kenyan runners typically come from districts like Keiyo, Marakwet and Nandi in western Kenya. Almost all of them represent Kalenjin tribes. Jehoshaphat Kimutai is one of the AKA Legends.

Kenyan Championships are held in summer, but separate trials are used to pick athletes for major international championships. Top Kenyan athletes usually attend these events, since those who skip them are likely miss major championships as well. Many leading Kenyan runners mostly compete in Europe, national championships and trials are the only event where local spectators can see them competing.

Other competitions organised by AK include series of track and cross-country meetings and number of road races. Kenya hosts three annual marathon events. Nairobi Marathon is the youngest, but is now leading in competitiveness and participation. Others are Mombasa Marathon and Great Lake Marathon, which is held in Kisumu. Additionally, there is a competition known as a Lewa Marathon, which involves races equal to full (42 km) and half marathon, but it is a cross-country race and thus cannot be classified as a marathon. Nevertheless, the half marathon event of Lewa Marathon has allured many Kenyan international runner and the event has been won by Paul Tergat, Catherine Ndereba and Joyce Chepchumba in recent years.

Many Kenyan runners are affiliated to governmental organisations like Armed Forces, Kenya Prisons or Kenya Police, which provide livelihood as well as training. In addition there are several private athletics clubs, like Mfae (based in Nyahururu) and Kiptenden (based in Kericho).

Athletics Kenya operates an Athletics Museum in Riadha House, Nairobi. The museum was opened on November 1, 2006. [6]

AK has been awarded the Kenyan Sports Federation of the Year award in 2006 [7] 2009 [8] and 2010 [9]

National championships

Athletics Kenya is responsible for holding the national championships and selection trials to Olympic and World Championship competitions.

Chairmen

Kit suppliers

Kenya's kits are currently supplied by Nike.

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sport of athletics</span> Group of sporting events

Athletics is a group of sporting events that involves competitive running, jumping, throwing, and walking. The most common types of athletics competitions are track and field, road running, cross-country running, and racewalking.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tegla Loroupe</span> Kenyan long-distance runner (born 1979)

Tegla Chepkite Loroupe is a Kenyan long-distance track and road runner. She is also a global spokeswoman for peace, women's rights and education. Loroupe holds the world records for 25 and 30 kilometers and previously held the world marathon record. She was the first African woman to hold the marathon World Record, which she held from 19 April 1998 until 30 September 2001. She is the three-time World Half-Marathon champion. Loroupe was also the first woman from Africa to win the New York City Marathon, which she has won twice. She has won marathons in London, Rotterdam, Hong Kong, Berlin and Rome.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Susan Chepkemei</span> Kenyan long-distance runner

Susan Chepkemei is a Kenyan long-distance runner, who competes in the 10,000 metres and marathon. In 2001, she won the Rotterdam Marathon and came first in the Great North Run, as well as winning the silver medal in the World Half Marathon Championships. She won also won the silver medal at the 2002 Commonwealth Games in the 10,000 m.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nancy Langat</span> Kenyan middle-distance runner

Nancy Jebet Langat is a Kenyan middle distance, runner who specialises in the 1500 metres. She won the gold medal in the 1500 m at the 2008 Summer Olympics, in a personal best time of 4:00.23.

The Principality Building Society Cardiff Half Marathon is an annual half marathon race held in the Welsh capital city of Cardiff, taking place in October. The event was established in 2003, initially alongside the Cardiff Marathon, however, due to the increasing popularity of the Half Marathon, the Marathon distance was dropped after 2006. The race was originally organised by the children’s charity Barnardo’s. Now organised by Run 4 Wales, the race has grown to accommodate up to 27,500 runners.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mercy Cherono</span> Kenyan long-distance runner

Mercy Cherono Koech is a Kenyan professional long-distance runner. She was the silver medalist in the 5000 metres at the 2013 World Championships in Athletics.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Evans Cheruiyot</span> Kenyan long-distance runner

Evans Kiprop Cheruiyot is a Kenyan long-distance runner who competes in the marathon. He started out as a half marathon runner, taking wins in Rotterdam and Nairobi, and won his debut marathon race in Milan in 2007. He won the Chicago Marathon in 2008, running a personal best of 2:06:25 hours.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sport in Kenya</span>

Sport is an important element of Kenyan culture. Various indigenous traditional sports have prevailed in Kenyan culture from its earliest history. Some of the traditional games and sports prevalent in Kenya since antiquity have included wrestling, racing exercises, stick fights, hunting, board games, bull fights and dances.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Caleb Ndiku</span> Kenyan runner

Caleb Mwangangi Ndiku is a Kenyan middle- and long-distance runner.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sharon Cherop</span> Kenyan long-distance runner

Sharon Jemutai Cherop is a Kenyan long-distance runner who specialises in the marathon. She won a bronze medal at the age of sixteen in the 5000 metres at the World Junior Championships. She was the bronze medal winner in the marathon at the 2011 World Championships in Athletics and won the Boston Marathon in 2012.

Mathew Kipkoech Kisorio is a Kenyan professional long-distance runner who competes in road running and cross country running competitions. He has a half marathon best of 58:46 minutes and a marathon best of 2:07:06 hours. On the roads, he has won the Philadelphia Half Marathon, Kagawa Marugame Half Marathon and Stramilano races.

Pauline Chemning Korikwiang is a Kenyan professional long-distance runner who competes in track and cross country running competitions.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">AAA Championships</span> Annual track and field competition

The AAA Championships was an annual track and field competition organised by the Amateur Athletic Association of England. It was the foremost domestic athletics event in the United Kingdom during its lifetime, despite the existence of the official UK Athletics Championships organised by the then governing body for British athletics, the British Athletics Federation between 1977 and 1993, and again in 1997. It was succeeded by the British Athletics Championships, organised by the BEF's replacement/successor, UK Athletics under its brand name British Athletics.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Paskalia Chepkorir Kipkoech</span> Kenyan long-distance runner

Paskalia Chepkorir Kipkoech is a Kenyan long-distance runner who competes mainly in half marathon races. Her personal best of 67:17 minutes ranks her within the top twenty all-time for the distance. She was the bronze medallist at the 2012 IAAF World Half Marathon Championships.

The Africa Military Games was a multi-sport event for military athletes in Africa. The one-off event was held under the auspices of the International Military Sports Council (CISM) and, its sister group, the Organization of Military Sport in Africa (OSMA). The games was hosted by Kenya in and around Nairobi between 17 and 27 April 2002.

The Kenyan Cross Country Championships is an annual cross country running competition that serves as the national championship for Kenya. It is organised by Athletics Kenya and has permit race status from the International Association of Athletics Federations. It is typically held in February in Nairobi, the country's capital, and entrants are almost exclusively from Kenya. Entrants represent their home region or one of the high level national works teams, such as Kenya Defence Forces, Kenya Police, Prisons or Universities. These teams host their own annual team championships in order to decide their selections for the national event.

Archie Evans was a British teacher and civil servant who pioneered the development of athletics in Kenya and co-founded the Kenya Amateur Athletics Association (KAAA), now Athletics Kenya.

Anastasia Ndereba is a Kenyan female athlete and marathon runner. She was born on September 27, 1974. She is the sister of the more renowned athlete and Olympic Medalist Katherine Ndereba. Her first recorded professional competition was on November 6, 1999, when she completed the 8 km Senior Women's Cross-country race organised by the KAAA, where she finished 4th in a time of 34 minutes and 32 seconds. She debuted as an IAAF athlete officiated by the IAAF in 2001, when she competed in the 3,000 women's B category in Rieti, Italy and emerged 7th with a time of 9 minutes, 12.95 seconds.

Daniel Simiu Ebenyo is a Kenyan middle-distance and long-distance runner.

Daniel Mateiko is a Kenyan long-distance runner and member of the NN Running Team. He has raced mainly between 5000m and half marathon and holds a 58:26 half marathon personal best which makes him the 9th fastest of all time over that distance.

References

  1. Ward, T. T. (2001). Gold in the hills: it is over 50 years since the beginnings of organised athletics in Kenya. Arthur Evans was the man who started it all, launching the Kenya AAAs, taking teams to major championships and for 20 years developing the sport. Now he can look back with pride at what he started, as he told Tony Ward. Athletics Weekly, 55(24), 22-23.
  2. Ward, T. T. (2001). Gold in the hills: it is over 50 years since the beginnings of organised athletics in Kenya. Arthur Evans was the man who started it all, launching the Kenya AAAs, taking teams to major championships and for 20 years developing the sport. Now he can look back with pride at what he started, as he told Tony Ward. Athletics Weekly, 55(24), 22-23.
  3. Kanyiba Nyaga, L. R. (2011). The History of Sports in Kenya. Unpublished Book Manuscript
  4. Ward, T. T. (2001). Gold in the hills: it is over 50 years since the beginnings of organised athletics in Kenya. Arthur Evans was the man who started it all, launching the Kenya AAAs, taking teams to major championships and for 20 years developing the sport. Now he can look back with pride at what he started, as he told Tony Ward. Athletics Weekly, 55(24), 22-23.
  5. Kanyiba Nyaga, L. R. (2011). The History of Sports in Kenya. Unpublished Book Manuscript
  6. Kenya Times, November 1, 2006: Kamanda happy with AK’s SColour and pomp at Soya Gala h6m museum
  7. The Standard February 23, 2007 Kipchirchir, Jepkosgei named Soya winners
  8. The Standard, December 12, 2009: Colour and pomp at Soya Gala Archived July 16, 2011, at the Wayback Machine
  9. "SOYA Awards - Winner 2010". Archived from the original on 2008-09-13. Retrieved 2011-03-19.