With 7 golds, 2 silvers, and 2 bronzes, Kenyan athletes stamped their authority as the next global stars of athletics. Their back-to-back winning performances propelled Team Kenya to second place on the points table led solely by the women’s squad, just behind the dominance of Team USA. The men struggled to make a mark, with Emmanuel Wanyonyi’s solitary gold highlighting a worrying slump. The head coach has now raised the alarm, signaling the need for a revival in Kenya’s men’s athletics.

Kenya’s head coach, Julius Kirwa, has unveiled Athletics Kenya’s bold plan to shield young male athletes from the relentless pull of road races. While the entire team delivered strong performances, it was the women who truly stole the spotlight. On the men’s side, only Emmanuel Wanyonyi triumphed with gold in the 800m, while Edmund Serem (steeplechase) and Reynold Cheruiyot (1,500m) earned bronze, highlighting the gap the initiative aims to address.

Addressing the media, the head coach expressed deep concern over the decline of Kenyan male athletes, “The performance of male athletes is really hitting us as a federation.” The coach highlighted that a good chunk of young boys are diving into road racing too early in their lives, sacrificing their track potential. “Our athletes are going to the roads at very young ages of 10 to 20 years, which they are not supposed to do,” said the coach.

Kirwa further revealed that coaches are now working with the federation to implement safeguards for rising male stars, “We have told the federation there’s no need for a young athlete to go straight into a 21km race.” Kirwa further expressed, “Once you hit the roads, it’s almost impossible to return to the track. The tarmac is not the same.”

During the conversation, the coach further revealed that President William Ruto has personally challenged the federation to raise the standards of male athletes and restore their dominance. ‎“With this strategic plan, we want to bring back glory for our male athletes. We must revive the boy-child on the global front,” he declared. ‎Kenya’s men have long been the backbone of the nation’s World Championship successes.

At the height of their power in Beijing in 2015, they claimed five of the country’s seven gold medals.‎ However, the decline since then has been stark. With a plan in mind, the coach is looking to make a change, and guess what? There’s optimism in it. Why? Because Kenya is finally recognizing his skills.

Julius Kirwa bags the Betika/SJAK Coach of the Month award

Following Team Kenya’s stellar performance in Tokyo with Faith Kipyegon in the lead, their head coach, Julius Kirwa, received well-deserved recognition. During the award handover, Betika Marketing Executive Marya Wachira praised the remarkable progress since the last World Athletics Championships, highlighting the Betika/SJAK Coach of the Month award as a key honor celebrating coaching excellence.

“This performance marks a significant improvement from the 2023 Championships in Budapest, Hungary, where the team secured 10 medals, including three gold, three silver, and four bronze. For Team Kenya to have made such strides, leadership came in handy, and that’s why we have made this strategic decision to have this monthly coach of the month award towards recognising such outstanding leaders,” noted Ms Wachira.

After receiving the September award, Team Kenya’s head coach expressed his gratitude to the organizers, highlighting the crucial role of the private sector in fostering excellence both on the track and beyond. “This is such a pleasant surprise and quite encouraging to realise that, beyond the fans, there are also private sector players who are keen to see us shine,” said Coach Kirwa.

He further added, “Such recognition will go a long way to giving us the much-needed momentum. Ours is to always grow the winning mentality as we focus on the next opportunity to raise our flag high.” Kirwa edged out strong contenders, including Coach Luke Makuto of Kenya’s U-20 men’s volleyball team, Nairobi City Thunder’s Bradley Ibs, and Andrew Amonde of KCB Rugby Club, to claim the coveted award.