Mary Moraa has pleaded with the Sports CS and the Kenya National Sports Council to provide answers over the decision to pick one athlete per event for the African Games.
Commonwealth Games 800m champion Mary Moraa has demanded answers from the Sports CS Ababu Namwamba and the Kenya National Sports Council due to the recent developments ahead of the African Games in Accra, Ghana.
An angry Moraa led athletes to a boycott during the national trials at the Nyayo National Stadium after Athletics Kenya announced that they would only pick one athlete from each discipline to represent the country at the continental showpiece.
The move was arrived at after the Kenya National Sports Council argued that there was a lack of funds to facilitate many athletes. Speaking to the media during the boycott, Moraa noted that many upcoming athletes want to get a chance to compete on the global stage, and denying them such chances is unjust.
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“When you look at sports in general, athletes are the ones who market Kenya and bring medals back home. We need to be answered by the CS and the Sports Council on what is happening," a frustrated Moraa said.
“There are upcoming athletes who want to come here and showcase their talents, others who have no jobs and they only rely on running, and then when we come here, we are told that they will only pick one.
“As athletes, we are very disappointed and we need to be addressed by the CS and Sports Council to explain what is really happening so we can know the way forward. Some people have been training for one year eyeing the African Games with the hope of going there and performing well.
“This is so painful and we need an explanation…right now, there is no one who wants to run despite having trained for long. Training in Nyayo, we have to pay Ksh200 every day and you never know where an athlete has gotten the money,” added Moraa.
The reigning world 800m champion had expressed her intentions to compete in the 400m and 4x400m relay but as things stand, there is no certainty.
Meanwhile, during the previous edition of the event in 2019, Kenya managed to send 61 athletes who represented the country well and jetted back with 20 medals (10 gold, 7 silver, and 3 bronze).
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ATHLETICS Mary Moraa leads athletes in protesting against African Games national trials
Kenyan athletes, led by world 800m champion Mary Moraa have staged a protest after Athletics Kenya revealed that they were forced to only pick one athlete from each discipline for the African Games in Accra, Ghana.