Sitting on a black leather sofa and holding a pair of brand new freestyle slalom skating shoes, Kevin Kiarie Ruhiu told his Facebook followers in a video he posted on February 26 this year that he was close to making it. Yet, he could not tell when exactly he made his first step to becoming Africa’s skating king.
“My first step could be now. Or it could have been Singapore, or when I first showed up to training in the morning. Thank you for believing in me and may God bless you,” Kiarie, who is in his mid-20s, said smiling to the camera.
On April 4, under the Amazon Monument at the Esplanade des Amazones in Cotonou’s 12th district, Kiarie finally made it.
The freestyle skater rolled to a gold medal in freestyle battle and a silver medal in the classic slalom during the International Skating Challenge held in the Beninese capital from 1-5 April. The competition featured 11 countries, including Kenya. The other countries were hosts Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Ghana, Guinea, India, Nigeria, Senegal, Spain, and Togo. Kiarie was Kenya’s sole representative in the competition.
Kenyan freestyle skater Kevin Kiarie at the 2025 Inline Freestyle World Championship held in Singapore in December 2025.
Photo credit: Pool
On Wednesday morning, during an interview with Hot 96 FM, Kiarie looked back on his journey to stardom.
He developed an interest in skating in 2014 during a visit to cousin, who was living in Kiserian.
“He showed me videos of himself skating and that birthed a dream in me,” Kiarie said.
The desire to pursue skating ended up influencing his university choices. “I just wanted to study at a university in Nairobi. Nairobi appealed to me as the best place to pursue my interest in skating,” Kiarie, who graduated from the Technical University of Kenya in 2023 with a degree in Technology Civil Engineering (Structural and Geotechnical Engineering option), said.
In September 2017, he bought his first skating shoes using his first Helb disbursement. The shoes cost Sh1,500.
Yet, as a rural-bred beginner in skating, Kiarie struggled for acceptance within Nairobi’s skating community when he tried to blend in during his first visit with his skates to Aga Khan Walk, where skaters meet every Sunday for practice sessions.
“I found a group that was very good at what they do and they chased me away, telling me to learn how to balance first before I can mingle with them,” Kiarie said.
The humiliation sent him to Industrial Area, where he bought better skates. He also took up freestyle slalom skating in 2019 as moved away from speed skating.
“I found speed skaters to be very muscular and I wanted to remain lean. Therefore, freestyle slalom skating appealed to me because the skates needed for it are cheaper,” Kiarie said.
First international competition
Still, even after upgrading his equipment, it remained unsuitable for freestyle slalom skating, and he was reminded of that with embarrassment when he competed in the 2025 Inline Freestyle World Championships, which took place from December 1-4. It was his first international competition after previous failed attempts to compete at tournaments held in China and Italy due to visa issues and funding challenges.
In Singapore, Kiarie competed in the senior men’s classic slalom category. He finished 18th out of 22 competitors as a Chinese trio swept the podium.
Updating his Facebook on December 3, 2025, Kiarie described his performance as “the best I could.”
“My only challenge was obviously the skates, but I shall get a quality one soon. Thank you all. I now stand at position 18 worldwide. I am looking forward to showing the full of myself in the future,” Kiarie added.
In a video he shared later, Kiarie had described the skating shoes he wore on that day as “heavy” and “not convenient for freestyle skating.”
Singapore proved to be the last time he wore sub-standard freestyle slalom skating shoes after a person he did not identify during his interview with Hot 96 FM volunteered to sponsor his equipment.
“I felt embarrassed when he asked me why I was competing with the skates I was wearing. I just could not bring myself to tell him that I did not have support yet I was there representing my country. I wondered how he would understand that,” Kiarie said. “I was using skating shoes which weigh seven kilos, yet freestyle slalom skating needs shoes weighing at most three kilos. That person volunteered to send me suitable shoes and all I had to do was to update my Instagram bio saying “sponsored by FinnSkateShop”,” Kiarie added.
The representative of FinnSkateShop sent Kiarie freestyle slalom skating equipment worth more than Sh128,000, the ones he was holding in the February 26 Facebook video post. His equipment for that remarkable conquest – comprising the shoes, wheels, and frames – cost more than Sh128,000.
“It goes beyond sacrifice for someone to provide me with freestyling slalom skating shoes worth more than Sh100,000, sets of wheels and frame worth more Sh20,000, and an extra set of wheels worth more than Sh8,000, and pay the cost of the delivery. These freestyle slalom skating shoes are made of carbon. They are light and flexible, and convenient for delivering better tricks than the ones I had previously. I am lucky that someone spotted and is helping me with my training. I am going to work hard to be somewhere,” Kiarie said in the video he posted on his Facebook page on February 26.
In the Hot 96 interview, Kiarie said he fundraised for his trip to Singapore, and later Benin, through the help of friends and income he gets from teaching people how to skate.
“I am a full-time skater. I train four to six hours in a day and after that I teach adults and kids how skate,” Kiarie, who is married, said.
In many ways, Cotonou was a big crowning moment for Kiarie and perhaps that explains his tears after his victory in West Africa.
“Fellow Kenyans, just did it. It is gold for Kenya. I am so proud to represent my country. I am so excited for my results after a fierce fight in competition. Even getting here was a fierce fight but I will do it again if I have to. Thank so much to everyone who has supported, you are everything to me. By the will of God, we will do it again next month in Egypt,” Kiarie said in between sobs.
Speaking on Hot 96, Kiarie expressed hope that the government will fund his appearance in future competitions, after past failures to secure funding from Ministry of Sports.
Kevin Kiarie speaking at a political rally in Roysambu, Nairobi, in February 2026.
Photo credit: Pool
“I do not want to be selfish to be selfish because I know the Ministry of Sports handles so many requests from many athletes and federations. I am not the only who seeks their help. I hope that after my performance in Benin they will fund me because I have proved my potential,” Kiarie said.
Kiarie has also declared interest in vying for the Roysambu parliamentary seat in 2027, sparking a section of Kenyans to state that he is using skating to further his political ambitions. Kiarie dismissed those allegations as “absurd”.
“Anyone who knows my story, knows I would never do that. It is a big contradiction for people to assume that I am using skating to run for office. I have been skating since 2019 and you cannot go to a world championship to campaign. I wake up every morning to train to make sure I am a perfect for global competitions. I hope that narrative dies,” Kiarie said.
