In May 2015, Shadrack Misiko, then a marketing attaché at Bungoma Tourist Hotel, took a break from his demanding work to watch Bungoma County men’s volleyball team’s training session at the Kenya Medical Training College Campus grounds in Bungoma.
The young Misiko was on attachment at the hotel after graduating from Sacred Training Institute with a Higher Diploma in Public Relations.
“You know how tiring a marketing and advertising job can get, especially when clients are not coming through,” Misiko, who plays for General Service Unit (GSU) in the Kenya Volleyball Federation men’s National League, told Nation Sport on Thursday during a training session at Nyayo National Stadium Gymnasium in Nairobi.
GSU face Kenya Airport Police Unit (KAPU) in a quarter-final clash on Sunday at Nyayo National Stadium Gymnasium.
“I would ride a motorcycle to look for clients for the company and that day, I didn’t get a client. I was tired and bored and so I decided to watch the Bungoma County team’s training session. The team manager, the late Vitalis Kong’ani, spotted me. It must have been my height I guess. He expressed his admiration for my height and asked if I had ever played volleyball. I told him that I used to play the game in college.”
GSU middle blocker Shadrack Misiko against Kenya Prisons at Moi International Sports Center, Kasarani on June 7, 2025.
Photo credit: Chris Omollo | Nation Media Group
Misiko, who stands 200 centimetres (6 feet 6 inches) tall in his socks, recounts his volleyball background.
Misiko, born in a family of seven, two boys and five girls, was a handball and basketball player in Form One and Form Two before he switched to volleyball in Form Three.
“Dennis Ouma who was at the time our school principal liked me so much and because of my height, he ensured I played basketball. I played basketball and handball but we didn’t get past the regional school games. I would pass by volleyball courts to watch my friends play and I begun to love the sport. Then I switched. May be it is because I did not like the contact in basketball and handball,” recalled Misiko.
“When I joined college in 2013 after leaving Kolanya Boys High School in Bungoma, I would play volleyball on and off. My training was erratic but in the tournaments I played in , I was always named the Most Valuable Player. So my talent was obviously there. I knew that if I took the game seriously, I would make it to the highest level.”
Kong’ani invited Misiko to train with the team, and that is how his journey to playing professional volleyball began.
Misiko, 30, says his parents - Joseph and Florence Misiko - didn’t want him to be a sportsman, as they believed it was a waste of time.
“My father is a retired agriculture officer, and my mother a retired teacher. They wanted me to study and get a white-collar job. Of course I heeded their call and joined the Sacred Institute Training College in Bungoma immediately after completing secondary school education in 2012. I scored a C minus and enrolled to study for a diploma course in 2013, and Higher Diploma in 2014 before I got an internship at Bungoma Tourist Hotel in 2015.
“I was not making ends meet. Sometimes you get clients and sometimes you don’t. It was getting to me and I thought training with the Bungoma County team would help clear my mind and perhaps also help me get a job at the county,” Misiko recounts.
“In secondary school and college, I was an outside hitter, but when I started training with Bungoma County, I realized the outside hitter department was flooded with at least eight players but there only four middle blockers. So, I lied to coach Moses Lukorito that I was a middle blocker because I knew it would be easier to get a slot in the middle rather than as a left attacker. I didn’t get enough time to train and so failed to make the cut for an open tournament that the team hosted a few days later,” says Misiko.
Renowned former Malkia Strikers captain Dorcas Ndasaba, who was Bungoma County women’s coach at the time, took it upon herself to sharpen Misiko’s skills.
“Ndasaba moulded me to who I’m today. Many times she would make sure I remained behind to train after other players had completed their sessions, and it didn’t take long before I mastered the art of playing in the middle,” says Misiko.
Not surprising, he made the Bungoma team that travelled to Nyeri County for a championship.
“In Nyeri, I played really well. Thereafter, Kenya Prisons, GSU and Cooperative Bank all came calling. Both GSU and Prisons promised me a job and so I left Bungoma and came to Nairobi in December 2015. I started training with Kenya Prisons but when GSU gave me an employment letter in 2016, I couldn’t resist joining them.”
“I went for the compulsory training course in 2016, and I passed out in 2017. I didn’t get the chance to play immediately after our passing-out parade as I suffered an injury during the official training.
“The joy on my parents’ face when I visited them after my passing-out parade changed the narrative about sports. To date, they support what I do and they are my number one fans,” says Misiko who hails from Kimwanga village in Bungoma County.
Shadrack Misiko (right) of GSU celebrates with a teammate during a National Volleyball League match against KPA at Moi International Sports Centre, Kasarani on June 8, 2025.
Photo credit: Chris Omollo | Nation Media Group
Last month, he was voted the Best Middle Blocker in the Kenya Volleyball Federation National League as his team General Service Unit (GSU) won the tournament.
Misiko, a constable, was instrumental in GSU’s victory in the Kenyan championship with his water-tight blocks and swift attacks.
GSU defeated Kenya Ports Authority (KPA) t2-1 sets in the play-offs final at Moi International Sports Centre, Indoor Arena to reclaim the title they had last held in 2023.
“I received my first call-up to the national team in 2015 during the World Volleyball Championship qualifiers under coach Paul Gitau but the event was called off. Since 2018, I have been receiving call-ups regularly and making the final cut, save for 2023 when I was left out of the team.
"It was painful but I went back to the drawing board and re-evaluated myself. I knew my fitness wasn’t good at the time, something I have worked on. I also went out of my way to do extra training and it is small wonder I played so well in the league."
“I want to prove a point as well in the Kenya Cup. We want to win the title,” he says.
The accomplished volleyballer dreams of becoming a fitness trainer when he finally retires from the sport. He also intends to pursue a Degree in Public Relations.
“PR is close to my heart. I shelved my career in PR in 2015 but I’m keen to pick up from where I left at some point in future. I’m good with words, try me,” he says.
