Athlete welfare at heart of Judo boss Maluki’s bid

For eight years, Shadrack Maluki has served as under the wings of National Olympic Committee of Kenya (NOC-K) President Paul Tergat as the deputy to the former long-distance runner.

The period brought stability to the scandal-ridden Kenyan Olympics body that was smarting from the bungling of Team Kenya’s operations at the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympic Games.

Having served as First Vice-Chairman at NOC-K under Lieutenant Colonel Tergat for eight years, Maluki has launched his bid for the organisation’s presidency with the promise of a new dawn for sports in Kenya.

Speaking during the launch of his bid for NOC-K’s presidency in Nairobi yesterday, Maluki, who is also the president of Kenya Judo Federation, promised to build on the foundation laid by Tergat to spur the growth of sports in Kenya.

Maluki, who is also the Africa Judo Union (AJU) chairman, said that he will implement athlete-centric strategies by putting sportsmen and women at the centre of key decision-making processes.

“We shall focus on athletes’ welfare by giving them mental support, and help them develop their careers, and retirement plan. We will advocate for transparent and fair selection of the national team to ensure that athletes picked qualify through merit for international events,” said Maluki.

“We shall create a culture of respect and inclusivity for all athletes regardless of their sporting background.”

Maluki, who has served as the NOC-K’s first vice president for two terms, will take on outgoing Secretary General Francis Mutuku for NOC-K’s presidency.

Citing the example of City Park Hockey Stadium in Nairobi, which is in bad state, Maluki promised to collaborate with key stakeholders, including the government, to refurbish and develop sports facilities.

Spur growth

Maluki said his team will work with the government to ensure sportswomen and women have full access to modern training facilities without much struggle, as well as help federations develop a comprehensive plan that will spur growth in their respective sports.

“My vision is to have other sports apart from athletics win medals for Kenya at the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics, and that work starts immediately,” said Maluki.

Regarding sports governance, Maluki said he will ensure the continuity of transparency and accountability that Tergat started at NOC-K.

“We shall establish clear policies for financial management, procurement and conflict resolution in our affiliates since peaceful coexistence among federations will always be felt at NOC-K,” said Maluki.

“We shall have an open culture of communication with all stakeholders, government, sponsors, media and international federations devoid of dictatorship,” said Maluki.

Maluki said he will jealously protect the integrity of sports by combating doping, match-fixing, gender-based violence and any other forms of corruption in sports.

He has picked outgoing NOC-K committee member Barnaba Korir, who is also the Athletics Kenya committee member as his first deputy president and Kenya Hockey Union chairman Nashon Randiek as his second deputy president.

Kenya Table Tennis Association president Andrew Mudibo will seek secretary general’s seat for the third consecutive time.

The team will front two-time Olympic marathon champion Eliud Kipchoge and Kenya Lionesses captain Grace Okulu as men and women’s Athletes' Representatives in the April 24 election, which will be presided over by the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission.

The federations settled on the duo so as not to subject athletes to campaigns and electoral processes.

Korir said they want to share their knowledge on how they have managed to have a strong youth development program over the years that has helped them churn out medallists at the Olympics in athletics.

 Mudibo said that their slogan, “New Dawn, Fresh NOC-K” has been informed by the dynamism of sports where there is change every day.

“We wake up to a new dawn and new things. It all started in 2017 when I led the advocacy for change in NOC-K. That process continues with the legacy the legacy Tergat has left. Maluki is the right person to take that dream to the next level,” said Mudibo.