The National Olympic Committee of Kenya (NOCK) President Shadrack Maluki engaged World Curling Tour President Mr Joe Walchili as Kenya seeks to explore pathways that can accelerate plans to expand the development of curling in Kenya, with a focus on introducing the sport in schools.
The discussions, held on the sidelines of the three-day International Sports Forum, Russia – Country of Sports, in Krasnoyarsk, Russia, established a collaborative framework involving NOC-K, World Curling Tour and the Kenya Curling Federation to support the rollout of the programme and broaden access to the sport.
“I had a productive engagement with Mr Joe Walchili, President of the World Curling Tour, to explore opportunities for developing curling in Kenya, particularly through schools. We agreed on the need for a collaborative approach involving the Kenya Curling Federation to introduce the sport to young people and establish a foundation for its growth in the country,” President Maluki announced.
Maluki offered that the key highlight was Mr Walchili’s offer to support the establishment of a curling centre at the Team Kenya High Performance Training Centre in Engineer, Nyandarua County.
According to the Kenyan NOCK boss, Mr. Walchili expressed his willingness to support the establishment of a curling centre at the Team Kenya High Performance Training Centre creating a potential pathway for athlete development and long-term growth of the sport.
“This presents an exciting opportunity to expand access to new sporting disciplines, nurture emerging talent and strengthen Kenya’s presence across a wider range of sports. Growing sport means opening more doors for our young people and building pathways for talent wherever it exists,” Maluki offfered.
The engagement marks a step towards diversifying Kenya’s sporting opportunities and introducing more young people to emerging disciplines.