In Tokyo
Kenya men’s handball team coach, Jack Habert, has picked positives from his team's 26-16 loss to Serbia at the ongoing 2025 Tokyo Deaflympics, vowing to return stronger against defending champions Croatia on Monday.
The Pool 'B' match will be held at the Komazawa Olympic Park General Sports Ground Indoor Stadium from 1pm (Kenyan time).
On Sunday, rank outsiders Kenya fell to Serbia at the same venue, with coach Habert blaming it on his team's failure to utilise numerous chances that came their way.
“We had a lot of chances, which we failed to convert. Had we scored those goals, then we would have put pressure on the Serbian team. I still think we are a good side. It was a battle between Africa and Europe,” Habert said.
“We will return stronger in our next match. We will make it very hard for Croatia. We don’t care whether are the defending champions or not. We will go hard on them and ensure we win,” he said.
This is Kenya's second appearance at the Deaflympics after debuting in the 2022 edition in Caxias do Sul, Brazil.
Apart from banking on the players’ familiarity with one another, Habert also drew confidence in the fact that the team has been competing against the hearing sides in the Kenya Handball Federation Men’s National League.
Against the odds, they have pulled off several impressive wins, finishing in position 20 out of 25 teams in their last campaign in the league.
Against Serbia, Kenya showed flashes of brilliance which offers hope that they can perform better. Kona Shamala and Ondwari Manyange top-scored for Kenya with four goals each.
On the other hand, Ognjen Oberknezev was the match’s top scorer with nine goals while compatriot Admir Durakovic grabbed six goals.
Kenya's Heavy loss in basketball
Pool 'B' comprises Kenya, Serbia, Croatia and France, while Pool 'A' consists of Japan, Germany, Turkey, and Brazil. After the pool matches, the teams will be ranked to determine the quarter-finals opponents.
“We have a good chance (of finishing in the podium places). We are going to play Croatia and France. After that, their will be quarter-finals. We hope to a medal in the tournament,” said Habert.
Meanwhile, the Kenya women’s deaf basketball team began their campaign in the 2025 Tokyo Deaflympics on a wrong footing losing 104-30 to Australia at Ota-City General Gymnasium on Sunday.
Kenya were overwhelmed in all the four quarters of the Group ‘A’ match, going down 44-3, 15-9,28-8, and 17-10.
Kenya’s coach, Mary Chepkoi, attributed her side’s huge loss to fatigue due to the long travel to Tokyo from Nairobi.
She expressed confidence that her team will raise its game against Italy on Monday (9:50am, Kenyan time) at the same venue.
“We will have a session later to talk about today’s game, but we have to adjust before our next match against Italy,” she said.
Kenya’s point guard Mercy Mideva also expressed hope that the team will recollect itself in the next match.
“We have lost the match and we are not happy about it. But we are hoping to learn from our mistakes. Tomorrow (Monday), we will have another match and we will try to improve our performance,” said Mideva.
Group ‘A’ comprises Kenya, Australia and Lithuania, Group ‘B’ consists Greece, Ukraine and Japan while Chinese Taipei, Turkey, USA and Poland are in Group ‘C’.
The Kenyan team is making its third appearance at the Deaflympics after featuring in the 2017 edition in Samsun, Turkey and the 2022 competition in Caxias do Sul, Brazil.
