World Athletics President Sebastian Coe has, once again, paid tribute to Kenya’s “resilience” and “determination” to host the World Under-20 Championships despite trying times globally.
Coe said while it would have been an easier way out for Kenya to pull out of hosting the event at a time global sporting activities have been thrown into a spin by the coronavirus pandemic, but the country chose to soldier on.
“Let me thank the Kenyan federation and Kenyan government for being resilient and determined to host these championships.
“My thanks go to the President (Uhuru Kenyatta) down to the federation, through (Athletics Kenya President) Jackson (Tuwei) to the Sports Minister Amina Mohamed,” Coe said at a meeting with African journalists at the Tokyo National Stadium yesterday.
“It would have been the easiest thing to say ‘let’s not do it,’ but they’ve done it and I think that lots of federations and athletes are grateful.
“It’s important (to host) because one of the biggest challenges we have in athletics is keeping young people in our sport, from the ages of 18 to 21,” Coe said.
He noted that the age-group competitions were essential to making athletes’ career progression smooth.
“It’s the toughest transition when you move from a junior athlete into the senior ranks. The sobering statistic is that most athletes that win medals at a world junior championships actually don’t make it into their senior national teams,” he said.
“There’s a very big attrition, a fallout of athletes at that point so these (age-group) championships are really crucial for a lot of athletes to remain focused and excited about understanding the journey to becoming a senior athlete.”
Coe said at the start of the year, World Athletics was determined not to cancel any event “unless it was absolutely beyond control.”
“I’m very grateful to our health and science teams that work very closely with your health authorities and the Kenyan federation to have the processes, protocols and safety measures in place.”
The World Under-20 Championships will be held at Kasarani from August 17 to 22 and will not be open to spectators in order to guard against the possible spread of Covid-19.
NTV, from the Nation Media Group stable, are the host broadcasters for the championships.
“I’m sorry that the fans won’t be given the opportunity to see great athletes, but that’s probably the sacrifice that was necessary. But like here (Olympic Games) the athletes are so excited to be back in competition that they accept that’s (empty stadiums) the price to pay.”
Coe has worn many hats, most significantly those of Member of Parliament for Falmouth and Camborne (1992-1997); Private Secretary to the Leader of the Opposition (1997-2001); Chairman, London Organising Committee of the Olympic Games and Paralympic Games (2005-2012); Vice-President (2007-2015) and then President, International Association of Athletics Federations (now World Athletics) (2015 to date).
He is also confident that Kenya, or an African nation, is capable of hosting the senior World Championships.
Nairobi has already put in a bid to host the 2025 World Championships and a decision on the host city will be announced by the World Athletics Council in November this year.
“I think Kenya is capable of hosting a World Championship; Africa is capable of hosting a World Championship, but that’s not the same as saying they will,” he observed.
“As President of World Athletics I don’t vote so as to remain neutral but I have my 27 Council colleagues and a bid oversight committee that will make evaluations on all bids that may or may not come to the table,” he noted. BY DAILY NATION