World Athletics head Coe expected in Nairobi today for brief tour
World Athletics President Sebastian Coe speaks to the media ahead of World Under-20 Championships at the Moi International Sports Centre, Kasarani in Nairobi, on August 17, 2021.
What you need to know:
- It will be the first trip of the New Year for the former double Olympic champion, a self-confessed admirer of Kenya’s athletics pedigree
- Athletics Kenya President Jack Tuwei confirmed Coe’s visit, adding that the World Athletics President will “at some point” address the media on various issues
- Coe has been vocal in his support for Kenya’s fight against doping, expressing his satisfaction at the government’s commitment to fighting the scourge, including a five-year, $5 million-a-year increased funding for anti-doping activities.
World Athletics President Seb Coe is scheduled to arrive in Nairobi Tuesday on a semi-official visit during which he will meet with various key personalities.
It will be the first trip of the New Year for the former double Olympic champion, a self-confessed admirer of Kenya’s athletics pedigree.
Coe, 66, who is also a former Conservative Party Member of Parliament for Falmouth and Camborne in the British Parliament, is expected to land at 2pm.
Athletics Kenya President Jack Tuwei confirmed Coe’s visit, adding that the World Athletics President will “at some point” address the media on various issues.
“We will make arrangements for the briefing at some point on one of the days during his tour as he has accepted to meet the media. He will be in the country for three days and again stop over on his way back from his next destination,” Tuwei said Monday night.
This will be Coe’s first visit to Kenya since the 2021 World Under-20 Championships.
He also toured for the 2017 World Under-18 Championships and has been to Kenya separately on a private visit.
Coe has been vocal in his support for Kenya’s fight against doping, expressing his satisfaction at the government’s commitment to fighting the scourge, including a five-year, $5 million-a-year increased funding for anti-doping activities.
In his end-of-year “State of the nation” conference with African journalists last month, Coe said Kenya is a key player in athletics, highlighting the fact that Kenyan athletes helped shape his illustrious running career.
“My athletics career was in a large part shaped inspirationally and by its values through Kenyan athletics…” he said.
“Kip Keino was one of my heroes, I raced against Mike Boit, Ben Jipcho was a distance god… and I could go all the way until 2012 when David Rudisha grabbed the attention of the whole world and did something I didn’t think I would see in my lifetime as an athletics spectator (800 metres world record of 1:40.91).
“So I think it’s really important that Kenya deals with this issue (war against doping) because you are not just your average athletics nation.
“This is not some countries in the world where athletics is ‘a nice to have sport and we will work as hard as possible to promote it.’ This (athletics) is deep in your DNA. This is what you are passionate about and I think the right decision has been made to absolutely try to get to grips with this.
“The world needs clean Kenyan athletes that have the confidence of the rest of the world whenever they set foot on the track and on the roads,” said Coe.
The World Athletics President’s running credentials are impeccable.
He is still the third fastest 800 metres runner ever (1:41.73) behind Rudisha (1:40.91) and Kenyan-Dane Wilson Kipketer (1:41.11) having broken several middle distance world records.
