Return to Sports Dilema in Kenya

Work in progress at the Nyayo Ntional Stadium/Courtesy

By Kenneth Wepukhulu

Today July 23rd is one year to the 2021 Olympic Games to be held in Tokyo, Japan but sports activities in Kenya are yet to resume.

New dates for the Olympics were set to give the health authorities and all involved in the organisation of the Games the maximum time to deal with the constantly changing landscape and the disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Going by the spike of COVID-19 cases after the Kenya’s Head of State President Uhuru Kenyatta eased restrictions imposed by the government to curb the spread of the virus it makes the resumption of sports activities a dream.

In March 2020, sports in Kenya  came to a standstill as most countries restricted public gatherings and closed all non-essential industries indefinitely to prevent the spread of coronavirus. With fear and apprehensions raging worldwide, sport, understandably took a backseat.

The committee comprises of senior officials from the Ministry of Sports, Culture and Heritage and its agencies, experienced federation managers, medics and also representatives.

On July 1st, 2020, Kenya’s Sports Cabinet Secretary (CS) Ambasadeur Amina Mohamed appointed an Advisory Committee meant to draw up protocols required for the resumption of sporting activities in the country.

The committee comprises of senior officials from the Ministry of Sports, Culture and Heritage and its agencies, experienced federation managers, medics and also representatives.

The CS said the committee, which will be headed by the Chief Administrative Secretary (CAS) in the Ministry, Hassan Noor Hassan, which engaged all key stakeholders by collecting their views on ideal protocols to be put in place before the resumption of sports activities.

Hassan disclosed to the media that the committee will be releasing the report next week.

The taskforce set up by the Sports minister is expected to underline the country’s sports bodies  fear of putting Kenya’s Olympic hopefuls in a "disadvantageous" position vis-à-vis their "global counterparts" if the training wasn’t resumed at the earliest.

It’s imperative to find avenues for the athletes to resume training at the earliest to make up for the lost ground during lockdown, in a bid to attain peak performance levels for the 2021 Tokyo Olympic Games or its qualifiers.

“Any further delay caused in resuming the training could put Kenyan athletes in a position of disadvantage compared to their global counterparts. It’s critical to put in place adequate measures to provide a safe training environment for the athletes," said the National Olympic Committee of Kenya (NOCK) president Dr Paul Tergat.

The global outbreak of COVID-19 has resulted in closure of gyms, stadiums, pools, dance and fitness studios, physiotherapy centres, parks and playgrounds.

Many individuals are therefore not able to actively participate in their regular individual or group sporting or physical activities outside of their homes.

As with other industries – from tourism to entertainment – there’s an understandable need to balance restarting and boosting economies, while ensuring it’s done in the safest way possible.

Football Kenya federation (FKF) executive led by the federation’s president Nick Mwendwa  has been holding meeting with its grassroots officials on the modalities and possibility of resuming soccer activities.

Internationally sports activities have resumed especially football dominating the list, starting with Germany top flight league the Bundesliga, then Italian Serie A, Spanish La Liga, English Premier League.

Disinfected balls, mandatory COVID-19 tests, elbow bumps and empty seats are now all part of global soccer – and the measures were on display as play resumed in various football leagues internationally.

At the moment in Kenya, due to the ban on games, no sports facilities including stadiums, pitches, pools, gyms, gymnasiums, academies are functional.

According to a spot check by the Sports Monthly Magazine across the country on various sporting facilities since the cessation of sports activities, it found them to be dusty, rusty and bushy.

Most workers working in sports facilities have either been laid or the casual workers have not been recalled to leave them desolate.

The Kenya National Sports Council (KNSC) has recommended for the avoidance of the usage of air conditioners (A/C) at training venues, no handshakes, sparring and high-five.

The council’s supremo Charles Nyaberi calls for compulsory testing for Covid-19 infection and a 14-day quarantine thereafter, nasal swab tests, no use of swimming pool, restricted gym visits and staying put at camps for the whole duration of the virus.

“These are some of the pre-requisite conditions for athletes, coaches and support staff to follow in totality for the resumption of sports activities in the country of the post the coronavirus-induced lockdown,” said Nyaberi.

The hiatus in stadium spectatorship due to the COVID-19 pandemic presents us with a unique opportunity to rethink the way sport fans participate in the making of live events.

Some sport leagues have resumed, with others to follow, but the stadium experience has profoundly changed as fans cannot gather in the galleries until the spread of coronavirus is arrested.

Most sporting events coming back in the pandemic have not permitted fans, leading broadcasters to use fake crowd noise, for better or worse.

England’s football Premier League offer viewers simulated crowd noise with help from the Electronic Arts’s “FIFA” soccer video game series.

It is desirable that sport bodies treat athletes as part of a community rather than a commodity before asking them to return to sport. Protecting athletes’ health and minimizing the chance of athletes infecting their community should be the priority.

However, there is an anxiety that the decision to resume sport leagues across the world will consider the political and commercial aspects of sport before public health.

Sports Monthly Magazine took time to research and came up with proposed guidelines without prescribing specific training protocols, but provide some general principles to be followed.

The national and county governments, , and local sports authorities should be consulted when considering when and how to return to training, including guidance on the numbers of players that should be involved at any one time, differences in age group guidance, and when competition and matches can be considered.

The principles outlined in this proposal apply equally to high performance/professional level, community competitive and individual passive (non-contact) sport.

Factors to consider when planning the return to training should include:

• Athlete/ support staff Education on Covid-19

• Arrangement of PPE and other safety equipment

• Disinfection of the entire accessible areas for a training session

• Consistent and Continuous Screening/ Testing

• Continuous Monitoring and case management

Regardless of the territory, the following general health and safety guidelines apply -

• Outdoor activities are rated safer than indoor

• Identification of specific groups which could start to train, i.e. children and adolescents.

• Define maximum numbers for players/instructors on the pitch in accordance with the Government guidelines

• Organize structured entry and leave of the pitch

• Respect minimal distancing on the pitch (1.5 metres), not for children less than 12 years

• Use only your equipment, shin pads, face masks, water bottles and other equipment, especially goalkeepers

• Disinfect balls and other commonly used equipment’s

• Spitting and clearing of nasal/respiratory secretions on the pitch or at any place within the facility other than toilets is prohibited

• Avoid cleaning of mouthguards on the pitchay, a figure that has more than doubled in the past month.