The Kenyan rugby fraternity is mourning the death of former Kenya Simbas and Kenya Shujaa international Robert Aringo.
The former half back, who also played for Impala, passed on in Nairobi on Saturday, aged 33.
“We join the entire rugby fraternity in mourning Robert Aringo, fondly known as ‘Majei’”, Kenya Rugby Union wrote on X.
Aringo learnt rugby at Saint Mary’s School in Nairobi and was part of the Saints team that finished third in the 2008 Kenya Secondary Schools Nationals Schools Game rugby XVs competition at Kisii High School.
From school, he joined Impala Saracens where he fielded mostly at scrum-half but also played at inside centre.
Aringo was first called up to Kenya Sevens by Mike Friday for the 2012/2013 but made his big break with his World Series debut try against Fiji at the Cape Town Sevens in 2014. His big season was 2015/2016 as he etched his name in the Series.
Under the guidance of legendary Benjamin Ayimba, Aringo and the likes of Collins Injera, Humphrey Kayange, William Ambaka, Andrew Amonde, Samuel Oliech and Nelso Oyoo, wrote history by winning the 2016 Singapore Sevens, the first time Kenya Shujaa won a leg of the elite world competition.
Aringo and company stunned fabled Fiji 30-7 in the final to place Kenya on top of the world in rugby sevens.
He featured for Kenya Simba XVs, playing under the name Tusker Simbas, in their historic Vodacom Cup adventure in South Africa in 2014. Aringo was fielded against Eastern Province Kings at City Park Stadium, Crawford, Boland and Western Province.
Aringo’s test debut came against Portugal on 30 May, 2015, coming in as a late replacement in a 46-15 victory for Kenya. It was a significant match in Kenyan rugby as Portugal were the first European test nation to play at the RFUEA grounds since Wales in May 1964.
Martin Owilla, his Kenya and Impala colleague, remembers him thus: “He was not flashy but did his duty on offence and rarely shirked tackles despite his diminutive frame.”
Fred Ollows recalls that Aringo's older brother Austin Aringo played rugby at Maseno School in the late 1980s before relocating to the United States of America.
He was the son of a former Education Minister and Kanu national chairman, the late Peter Oloo-Aringo.
