LONDON, United Kingdom, Jun 5 – Kenyan football side Kariobangi Sharks will not have the honor of rubbing shoulders against Everton’s Phil Jagielka in their upcoming SportPesa Challenge after the defender announced his departure from the Premier League club after 12 years at Goodison Park.

Kariobangi Sharks is scheduled to host the English Premier League side in an international friendly July 7.

The 36-year-old former England international said on Instagram: “It’s been hard to confirm my situation for next season as that decision hadn’t been fully made by the club until now, unfortunately my journey at Everton has come to an end after 12 fantastic seasons.

“I have been lucky enough to play over 380 games and lucky enough to be club captain for 6 years.

“All I can say is thanks to all the players I’ve played alongside, all the staff that have helped me in their own way, the chairman and of course the amazing fans. Wishing everyone associated with this special club the very best for the future!!”

Jagielka made more than 300 Premier League appearances for Everton, who signed him from Sheffield United for £4 million ($5 million) in 2007.

But the defender, who won 40 England caps, only featured in seven Premier League matches in the 2018/19 season.

The post Jagielka out of Sharks friendly after announcing Everton exit appeared first on Capital Sports.

NAIROBI, Kenya, June 6 – Two lucky winners; Maina Kariuki and George Simbiri have won an all-expense paid trip courtesy of betting firm BetLion to watch Harambee Stars take on African football giants in the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations slated to kick-off June 21 in Egypt.

The duo will be accompanied by a friend each and will be in Egypt for 7 days to enjoy matches everyday in the continental showpiece where Harambee Stars is making first appearance since 2004.

BetLion, the home of Africa’s biggest jackpot worth Ksh 350 million, has been running the campaign since April 8 and ended May 31. To enter into the promotion, one simply needed to deposit and place a bet with BetLion with every bet is equated to an entry.

“As a sports lover, when I saw the promotion, it excited me. With my fingers crossed every time I played with BetLion, I prayed to be one of the winners,” an elated Maina Kariuki stated.

“When I received the call that I was the winner, I couldn’t believe it, but I am so happy to be going to cheer on Kenya at AFCON. Thank you BetLion,” he added.

“BetLion made a promise to be a rewarding platform, these winners here are just but the beginning. There will be more sporting safaris but locally and abroad, we seek to make this promotion a brand asset, Kenyans should brace themselves for more sport tourism,” said Managing Director of BetLion Kenya, Spencer Okach.

The post BetLion awards two lucky winners with AFCON trip  appeared first on Capital Sports.

PARIS, France, Jun 7 – National football team Harambee Stars are in their sixth day of residential training in Marcoussis, a suburb of the French capital France ahead of the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) which kicks off on June 21 in Cairo, Egypt.

The team is being hosted at the French Rugby Federation headquarters which also hosts a state-of-the-art training complex complete with all facilities needed for top level training.

The French men and women’s teams for both 15s and 7s train at this complex and in a few days, Stars will share the same facility with the 15s side preparing for the Rugby World Cup which will be held in Japan from September.

Most recently, the Portuguese national team camped at the facility ahead of their 2016 Euro contest where Cristiano Ronaldo and co were put through their paces at the same complex Victor Wanyama and the rest of his teammates are training.

-Timothy Olobulu is reporting from Paris, France- 

The post In pictures: Harambee Stars training in Paris appeared first on Capital Sports.

NAIROBI, Kenya, June 7 – The 13th edition of Henry Wanyoike Hope for the Future Run will be held on Saturday, June 8 in Kikuyu town, Kiambu County.

Safaricom has sponsored this year’s race to a tune of Ksh1m and is expected to attract over 8,000 participants.

This is in addition to providing security and ambulances for the event whose target for the year is to raise Ksh10m, in kind and cash that will be used to distribute 200 white canes for visually impaired people across all 47 counties.

“This year our goal is to distribute white canes to enhance mobility for visually impaired people. This will have a positive impact on their lives because they will be able to move around on their own in their places of work, business and school,” said Henry Wanyoike, world record holder and founder Henry Wanyoike Foundation.

This year’s categories will be the; 9kms for seniors and juniors, wheelchair races as well 3.5 km for veterans and children.

Last year, the race raised Ksh 5m which was used for various projects including; distributing White canes and Wheelchairs, supporting a nursery school run by Henry Wanyoike Foundation with over 70 vulnerable children and planted over 3,000 trees in Kiambu County.

“As part of our commitment to offer a platform for athletes, we have been supporting the Henry Wanyoike Hope for the Future Run since inception. We are proud to be part of this noble race once again and we are happy that the funds raised will be used to ensure that as many visually impaired people are empowered,” said Sylvia Mulinge, Chief Customer Officer, Safaricom.

An exciting line-up of athletes is expected at the run including last year’s winners; Rhonzas Lokitam, Kamau Wangui, Robert Ndiwa and Ruth Karanja, Judy Cherotich and Esther Waweru.

The post Henry Wanyoike Hope for the Future Run set for this weekend appeared first on Capital Sports.

PARIS, France, Jun 7 – Harambee Stars head coach Sebastien Migne has confirmed that striker Michael Olunga will not start Friday night’s friendly match against Madagascar at the Stade Robert Bobin in Paris.

Olunga only arrived in Stars’ training camp in Marcoussis on Thursday morning and had his first session with the team in the evening, with Migne saying he cannot take the risk of playing him immediately to avoid the danger of picking up injury.

“Olunga travelled today and we cannot take a risk with him. He will not start at the beginning but it will be a good opportunity for other players to show me their qualities,” said Migne of his lead striker who is expected to lead the line at the African Cup of Nations.

The forward had delayed to arrive in Paris after a near tussle between the Football Kenya Federation (FKF) and his Japanese club Kashiwa Reysol who had stuttered in releasing their star forward to the national team.

In his absence in the Madagascar friendly on Friday, Migne is set to look at various options who are hungry to prove themselves including the uncapped Christopher Mbamba and John Avire as well as Masud Juma.

Stars have been in Marcoussis for the past seven days and have been carrying out double training sessions as the coach looks to bulk up the team ahead of their first AFCON game against Algeria on June 23.

Algeria are also camping in France, just like Madagascar and the coaching team of the North African giants are expected to be at the Stade Robert Bobin to scout on their opponents.

But Migne will be concentrating on improving his team ahead of the tourney and he says so far he is happy with what he has seen in training.

“I am happy; the coach is always happy when all players are available for him. It was long but now we have no time to lose. We need to work hard and I think we are on the way, also. I will have some answer during the training session and I will also have some answer after the game against Madagascar because soon I will need to name my final list of 23,” stated the coach.

Biggest on his to do list is building team spirit and a winning mentality, something he said worked well during the qualifiers to help the team qualify for their first African Cup of Nations since 2004.

The tactician is pleased with the work players are putting into training and believes by the time they leave the National Rugby Centre where they are putting up their paces, they will be a much improved side.

“When you are Kenya you can’t play without good team spirit. We need to keep it and develop a winning mentality everyday on the field. We have good conditions here though there was some rain yesterday but now it is good,” the tactician stated.

-Timothy Olobulu is reporting from Paris, France- 

The post Olunga set to miss Madagascar friendly appeared first on Capital Sports.

PARIS, France, Jun 7, 2019 – Ayub Timbe played only one of Harambee Stars’ 2019 African Cup of Nations (AFCON) qualification matches, the 2-1 loss against Sierra Leone in Free Town on Match Day One, but he has returned to the team with a dream of playing a pivotal role in its success.

Timbe was suspended for three matches following his sending off in that game, but just before he was eligible to return, picked up an injury that sidelined him for six months after surgery.

Fit again, the Chinese based winger hopes he can make up for time lost with a robust display at the Cup of Nations which kick off on June 21 in Cairo, Egypt.

“I am thankful to be back. It was a tough period but I had a good team behind me. I have been working hard for the past few months and I am delighted to be back and playing. I had planned the surgery well to ensure that I would be back for AFCON and I have been working on my fitness for the last two months now,” Timbe told Capital Sport.

“It was tough not only for me but my family and the national team as well. For a player it is agonizing being out for such a period of time but that is now behind me and I am focused now to bring in good results for the team,” he further added.

Timbe is working with head coach Sebastien Migne for the first time and the Frenchman’s work ethic, belief and confidence in him has already rubbed in well.

“I have enjoyed so far because I have been here for like three days. He is a very good coach who insists on discipline and hard work and it has not been tough getting along with him because we believe in the same things,” Timbe noted.

His focus is solely on the Cup of Nations where Kenya hopes to make it into the round of 16 at least and Timbe believes with the current group of players, it is possible to achieve the feat.

“I believe that everything is possible. Our motto now is ‘yes we can’ and if we believe in ourselves, go there and show mentality we can achieve anything. Everyone is giving their best and everyone is focused,”

“We are all looking forward to it because the coaches have done their job on the group that we are in and the players as well have shown that they want to do this. I believe getting out of the group to the knockout round is something we can achieve,” he added further.

Stars will be boosted with is return especially in attack, an area that Migne has time and again stated he would want improvement.

The post Fit again, Timbe dreams of AFCON success appeared first on Capital Sports.

PARIS, France, Jun 7 – Harambee Stars players have left their base at the French Rugby Federation headquarters in Marcoussis to the Stade Robert Boban which is 15km away from their residential camp ahead of Friday night’s friendly game against Madagascar.

The entire squad of 27 has left for the game including striker Michael Olunga though he is expected to play a minimal role in the tie having trained only once with the rest of the team after arriving on Thursday morning.

Here are some images of the players heading out to the game from the FFR.

The post Harambee Stars head out for Madagascar tie appeared first on Capital Sports.

PARIS, France, Jun 7 – Sofapaka forward John Avire will don the senior national team jersey for the first time in a competitive match on Friday evening when Harambee Stars take on Madagascar in their first of two international friendly matches in Paris.

Avire will lead the attack ahead of Michael Olunga who only joined the team on Thursday evening and has had one training session with his teammates.

The youngster made his first ever national team cut for the Under-23 side that played Sudan on an Olympic qualifier in March.

There are no much surprises with the rest of the squad as head coach Sebastien Migne has gone with the strongest team.

Captain Victor Wanyama will be at the centre of midfield alongside Dennis Odhiambo while his deputy Musa Mohammed starts in defense alongside Brian Mandela.

Ayub Timbe will also start his first match for the national team under head coach Sebastien Migne hitting it upfront as one of the front three alongside Francis Kahata and Avire.

Timbe’s last match for Stars was in the first 2019 African Cup of Nations qualifier against Sierra Leone in November 2017 in Freetown.

Harambee Stars Starting XI:

18. Patrick Matasi (GK), 20. Philemon Otieno, 3. Abud Omar, 5.Brian Mandela, 2. Musa Mohammed, 12. Victor Wanyama, 21. Dennis Odhiambo, 10. Erick Johanna, 7. Ayub Timbe, 11. Francis Kahata, 9. John Avire

Substitutes

John Oyemba (GK), Faruk Shikalo (GK), Joash Onyango, Joseph Okumu, David Owino, Bernard Ochieng, Eric Ouma, Anthony Akumu, Ismael Gonzalez, Ovella Ochieng, Paul Were, Cliffton Miheso, Johanna Omollo, Masud Juma, Christopher Mbamba, Michael Olunga

The post Avire to lead Stars line against Madagascar appeared first on Capital Sports.

PARIS, France, Jun 7 – Victor Wanyama’s 62nd minute penalty handed Kenya’s Harambee Stars a 1-0 win over Madagascar at the Stade Robert Bobin in Paris, France on Friday night in their first of two pre-African Cup of Nations (AFCON) build up matches.

The Tottenham Hotspur midfielder slotted in the game’s lone goal in a second half that saw Stars show a much improved performance, commanding play better and creating scoring opportunities courtesy of three half time changes.

Stars were lucky to be level at 0-0 at the break after Madagascar themselves had a penalty, but keeper Patrick Matasi came to the rescue with a powerful left arm to ensure the boys stood a chance despite a poor first half.

Off a swiftly  executed counter, Madagascar were away and Metanire Romain sent Tsilavina Martin through into the box. Matasi came out to cover and in his outstretched arms brought down the lanky forward.

From the resultant penalty, the keeper made amends, leaping to is right and his strong left hand parried Charles Andriamahitsinoro’s penalty onto the crossbar and out.

Madagascar who camped in Kenya’s half for most of the opening 45 minutes created more chances and should have been up by at least two or more goals, were they more clinical in the final third.

They started knocking on the door early with Rayan providing the first danger with a curled ball that went just over when he cited Matasi a few yards off his line.

In the 22^nd minute, Andriamahitsinoro came inches close when his shot from inside the box was deflected onto the crossbar after Kenya struggled to clear the ball from a cutback on the left.

Just before that effort, Kenya had survived another flow of attack, this time thanks to Musa Mohammed who made a great block after throwing his body on the floor to keep out a shot from Andriatsina Faneva.

On the half hour mark, Philemon Otieno almost turned the ball into his own net when he tried to block a cross from Romain with Matasi off his line but luckily for him the ball sailed inches wide.

Andriamahitsinoro had another big chance when his freekick was swayed by the wind, but Matasi punched the ball away.

Kenya’s best and probably only good chance of the game was off an Eric Johannah freekick that was fisted away by the keeper. Ayub Timbe was Kenya’s most colorful player, but most of his runs and dribbles couldn’t bring much of results.

At the start of the second half, Migne made changes, Musa, Johannah and John Avire coming off for Joseph Okumu, Eric Ouma and Michael Olunga.

The changes saw Kenya’s performance improve with Olunga proving a menace to the Madagascar backline. He showed his prowess within minutes, winning the ball from range but his shot went wide.

The improved performance with the introduction of pace on the wing and some assured legs in attack saw Kenya get rewarded with the game’s opening goal.

Timbe broke away on the left and his attempted cross was cut off by the arms of Norel Jeremy. Skipper Wanyama stepped up and made no mistake from the spot, sending the keeper the wrong way.

Stars were buoyed by the lead and hugely improved. Olunga came close when he picked up the ball at the edge of the box cutting off a Madagascar miss pass, but his curling effort went inches wide off target.

Madagascar had two late chances on the other end, but both went begging as Stars held on for the victory.

The post Ice cool Vic lifts Kenya over Madagascar appeared first on Capital Sports.

PARIS, France, June 8 – Under cold, rainy and windy conditions at the Stade Robert Bobin Stadium in Paris on Friday night, Harambee Stars beat Madagascar by a solitary goal in their first 2019 African Cup of Nations warm up tie, 16 days before their opening game in Cairo against Algeria.

But, despite the win courtesy of Victor Wanyama’s second half penalty, Stars have a lot to work on especially if the first half performance was anything to go by.

Head coach Sebastien Migne has admitted that the team was lucky to go into the break level with the Malagasy especially as they had seen a penalty saved by Patrick Matasi and had an effort also go against the crossbar.

“We were lucky to return at halftime with a draw; it is exactly what I said to the team. But in football you have two periods; the second half was better. I think it was a problem of attitude, but it’s difficult because we have new players,”

“It was the first call up for Avire and also the first call up for Ayub with me and we didn’t play all of us together in the same time. It is a huge problem in football, you need to be a compact as a team. We rectified after in second half and it was better,” Migne stated.

-Attack needs more effort

The team had just one effort on target the entire opening 45 minutes, and it was a freekick from Eric Johannah from range.

Defensively, Kenya kept it neat at the back though there were nervous moments frequently when Madagascar attacked from the flanks. Philemon Otieno and Aboud Omar were both found off guard a few times by the speedy Malagasy wingers.

However, Musa Mohammed and Brian Mandela partnered well at the heart of defense to thwart any kind of danger.

The team built well from the back but when it came to the business end in the final third, the options were always lacking. You might blame it on a new combination as Francis Kahata, Ayub Timbe and John Avire have not played together before.

More often than not, Timbe picked the ball from deep, tried to dribble in but he had not much of options infront of him as the other two, especially Avire who was making his senior team debut did not read much into how he plays.

Head coach Sebastien Migne has admitted as much, that the team needs to get sharper infront of goal.

“We scored with a penalty, but we need to score during the game; I want it. We can improve also the set pieces, first half was not good. At the beginning of the match we also need to improve our concentration at the beginning of the game,” Migne stated.

-Olunga shows he should start at AFCON

The introduction of Michael Olunga in the second period brought Kenya to life in attack. His height, speed and precision with his left foot caused Madagascar some trouble.

He was to play a minimal role in the tie having only trained once, but judging from the opening 45 minutes, coach Migne knew he needed to bring in his Mr. reliable to bring in some punch, something that he did.

All over sudden, the Madagascar defense was shaky with Olunga troubling them with his hold up play and thrice intercepted back passes with one of the efforts going inches over with a good curl and a second low shot going just wide.

“It was a good start for me at least I am getting into rhythm. I am not worried about scoring because I know it will come,” Olunga commented after the match.

-Matasi makes firmer claim for number one spot

Patrick Matasi has shown that he has grown from his performance against Ghana in March in Kenya’s final African Cup of Nations qualification match with a more matured and improved performance in the game against Madagascar.

The St. George keeper played a massive role in Kenya’s qualification, his performance against Ethiopia away and Ghana at home being central in Kenya picking vital points.

Save for one situation where he almost gifted Madagascar of a goal after dropping down the ball at the feet of a striker inside the six yard box as he tried to launch a distribution, Matasi was solid in goal and his penalty save earned him pay for the day.

-Youngster Okumu shows he is one for the future

Joseph ‘Crouch’ Okumu came on at the start of the second half for Musa Mohammed who had been pulled out as precaution after a slight muscle strain.

But, the lanky defender blended in with Brian Mandela seamlessly, was calm, composed and made several important blocks especially in the final minutes of the game when Madagascar were launching attacks to try get an equalizer.

The Harambee Stars U-23 skipper received plaudits from fellow journalists who were watching the game in the tribune and skipper Victor Wanyama also praised his performance on the pitch.

“He is a young talent and today he showed he is grown and knows what it takes to perform at the top level like this and he performed really well, was calm and played really good balls and we are lucky to have a player like him,” Wanyama said of the USA based stopper.

Stars will now work for the next six days before shifting their attention to their second friendly game against DR Congo in Madrid, Spain on Saturday before embarking on the trip to Cairo, Egypt for the final tournament.

The post Plenty to do for Stars after Madagascar tie appeared first on Capital Sports.

PARIS, France, June 8 – Harambee Stars head coach Sebastien Migne has fired a warning to China-based winger Ayub Timbe that he has to conform to his philosophy or else he risks falling out of favor in the squad.

Timbe started his first match for the national team under Migne during Friday night’s friendly match against Madagascar in Paris but despite being one of the most lively players in the team, the French tactician says he did not play much to his style.

“Ayub needs to understand my philosophy; the philosophy which we have built for one year. But, I am not worried because I know he will understand. Of course if it is not the case it will be a problem for him, but I know he will understand,” Migne said after the game.

He added; “He is a talented player and he wanted to show me his quality but maybe he wanted to show it too much. But we have time to work and improve the level of the team.”

Meanwhile, the tactician said he was proud of the team’s young guns, including debutant John Avire who played the first 45 minutes and Joseph Okumu who came on as a substitute for Musa Mohammed at the beginning of the second 45.

“I was happy and almost ready to let him (Avire) go on with Olunga, but Olunga is Olunga. In the beginning I didn’t want to put him from the start because he only arrived yesterday (Thursday). But Avire showed some good things. He will be interesting for the future. He is here to learn during this period but we didn’t help him in first half he was alone. We reduced the space with Olunga in the second half and played better,” the tactician said.

On Okumu’s calm and composed performance at the heart of defense, Migne was also pleased saying Kenya’s defense is in safe hands now and in the future.

“If you don’t put the player on the field you can’t have the answer. I am not afraid to have confidence in my players; even the young players. He showed me during the last training session that he deserves to have a chance,”

“He will be the future of Harambee stars soon; soon maybe next week, maybe after AFCON; we will see he has the quality and behavior. I am a happy coach because I have options in central defense. If you look at Mandela (Brian), Musa (Mohammed), Joash (Onyango) and Bernard (Ochieng), they are not very old,” he further stated.

Despite nit being pleased with how the first half panned out, Migne says he was happy with victory saying it has boosted their confidence heading into the final two weeks of training before the Cup of Nations kicks off in Egypt.

“It is always good to win in football. The good thing is that we didn’t concede a goal and that means we are strong defensively even under the storm like was the case in the first half. It was difficult sometimes but we were there and at the end it is a victory and it is fantastic,”

“Victory brings confidence but we need to continue to be humble. Without humility in football it is tough. When you don’t respect football, football will kill you like it was almost the case in the first half but fortunately we had a good reaction in the second half,” stated the Frenchman.

Stars had a free day on Sunday where they were given permission to tour the city of Paris, but will be back hard at work at their base in Marcoussis with two sessions on Sunday.

The post Timbe must work with my philosophy-Migne appeared first on Capital Sports.

NAIROBI, Kenya, June 8 – Second time to participate, Michael Njenga and Lidya Njeri reigned supreme at the 13th edition of the Henry Wanyoike Hope for the Future Run that saw over 2000 participants turnout in the annual race held on Saturday at Kikuyu, Kiambu County.

Njenga clocked 25:02 to beat Vincent Boit and Dancun Manyara who finished second and third in a time of 25:22 and 26:09 respectively in the men’s 10km senior race.

“I am glad for my win today. This is my second time to be part of the run and I have been training hard to win. The weather was good with a clear route.  My victory today will go a long way to not only help me but also to assist those who have visual impairment,” said Njenga.

Njeri, who was also participating in the race for the second time crossed the finish line at 30:31 ahead of Pauline Wangui who came in second at 30:37 followed closely by Esther Waweru at 31:18 in the women’s senior race.

“The race was tough due to stiff competition from.  Being my second time here, I’m glad I won. I am looking forward to concentrating in the international races this year,” said Njeri.

In the 9km junior race, Ephantus Githau won in the men’s category crossing the finish line in time of 27:37. He was followed closely by Simon Kimor in time of 29:31 and Mathew Nganga in time of 29:38.

Lucy Wanjiku won the 9km Junior women’s category finishing at 38:13 followed by Joyce Wawera at 41:11and Hannah Muthoni at 47:25.

Njenga and Njeri each went home with a cash prize of Ksh 15, 000 while the first and second runners-up in the senior categories pocketed Ksh 10,000 and Ksh 8,000 respectively. For the juniors, it was Ksh 5,000, Ksh 3,000 and Ksh 2,000 for the first three positions.

The race comprised of 10kms for seniors, 9km for juniors, wheelchair races as well 3.5 km for veterans and children.

This year’s goal is to distribute white canes to enhance mobility for visually impaired people enabling them to move around on their own in their places of work, business and school.

Safaricom sponsored the race to a tune of Ksh 1 million in cash. This is in addition to providing security and ambulances for the event whose target was to raise Ksh 10 million, in kind and cash that will be used to distribute 200 white canes for visually impaired people across all 47 counties.

The post Huge turnout as Njenga, Njeri win Henry Wanyoike run appeared first on Capital Sports.

NAIROBI, Kenya, June 8 – Over 200 runners on Saturday gathered to take part in the official launch of the running trails at Tatu City that will see celebrated Olympian Lorna Kiplagat construct a 100km of the same.

The construction that is set to begin immediately is a joint venture by Tatu City and renowned Kenya athlete Kiplagat.

The facility targets residents and employees in the mixed-use facility that lies between Kiambu and Ruiru towns on the outskirts of Nairobi city.

It will be welcome addition to investments in health and sports that are designed to promote personal fitness and wellbeing and to fight back lifestyle diseases blamed on sedentary occupations among other causes.

By partnering with Lornah, Tatu City that plans to host over 6050 homes and businesses, hopes to tap into her sports brand name and her vast experience in designing and construction of sports facilities locally and abroad.

Among her better-known facilities is the High Attitude Training Center in Iten, Elgeyo Marakwet County that is a popular training ground for elite athletes drawn from all over the world.

Speaking at the event, the long-distance runner who also owns the Lorna Sports brand said Tatu City was an ideal location for running facilities.

“Tatu City’s ample green space is ideal for runners and health enthusiasts,” said Kiplagat. “The opportunity to plan the trails and fitness areas of an entire new city is thrilling, especially because Tatu City is open to all Kenyans.”

Tatu City currently has more than 6,000 homes under construction and advanced development. Two schools – Nova Pioneer and Crawford International – with a combined population of 1,500 students are among the 50 businesses local and international businesses housed in Tatu.

“Lornah will play a pivotal role in the design of health-centric connectivity between homes, offices, schools, health facilities and businesses, as well as in the broader recreational amenities at Tatu City,” said Chris Barron, Kenya Country Head for Rendeavour, Tatu City’s owner and developer. “We are honoured to partner with a living legend like Lornah, whose records endure to this day.

The World Health Organisation, among others, has raised a red flag over ballooning numbers of overweight and obese people in sub-Sahara Africa including Kenya.

Lack of regular exercise is linked to weight gain, which, in turn, is considered an important catalyst for Type II diabetes, and high cholesterol levels associated heart-related diseases.

At the launch of the inaugural Tatu City Fun Run to kick off the partnership between Tatu City and Lorna Kiplagat, Christopher Kemei clocked 23:55 to win the 7km run. Hot on his heels was Clement Pariono in 24:20 with Geoffrey Kapelo rounding off the podium in 24:40.

“The race wasn’t exactly easy like I expected. I didn’t make my target time but I think It is because of the weather. I am using this race to prepare for for the national championships. This is such a moral booster for me,” Kemei.

Long-distance runner Lornah Kiplagat was born in Kenya and became a Dutch citizen in 2003. She has several world records to her name, including four world titles and one European title.

In 2007, Lornah won the World Cross-Country Championships in Mombasa, Kenya. She participated in three Olympic Games: Athens (2004), Beijing (2008) and London (2012).

She won the marathons of Los Angeles (twice), Amsterdam, Rotterdam and Osaka, was second in Chicago and third in the New York City Marathon. Lornah is also the founder of the High Altitude Training Centre (HATC) in Iten, Kenya, which she runs together with her husband, Pieter Langerhorst.

Lornah is renowned for her powerful, offensive running style that evokes associations with a lion. Her nickname is Simba, Swahili for lion. The lion is therefore inseparable from the sports brand, Lornah Sports.

The post Lorna Kiplagat designs running trails in Tatu City appeared first on Capital Sports.

MOMBASA, Kenya, June 8 – The National Olympic Committee of Kenya (NOCK) on Saturday unveiled Team Kenya that will represent the country in the inaugural Africa Beach Games set to be hosted in Sal, Cape Verde from June 14-23.

The unveiling that also saw the NOCK, present kit to the team, took place in Mombasa County with the association deputy president Shadrack Muluki, Acting Secretary General Francis Mutuku and Athletes Representative Humphrey Kayange presiding over the event.

Most of the teams including Men’s and Women’s handball, soccer men, tennis and Kite Boarding held their training sessions in the morning alongside the beautiful scenery of the Coastal beach ahead of departure next week.

“The teams are ready, they have been to camp for two weeks and they are excited to represent the country in the first Africa Beach Games. We are looking to make it a regular event in Kenya because we have seen there is so much talent,” Mutuku said after unveiling the team.

He added; “The Africa Beach Games will also be used as qualifiers for the World Beach Games scheduled for October later this year, so we hope and pray that our athletes as many as possible meet the qualifying mark.”

Kenya will be represented in seven disciplines where it will have one athlete in Kite Boarding, two in Half Marathon (Man and Woman), one in Canoeing and Rowing, the Beach Volleyball men’s and women’s teams, one Karateka, Beach Soccer men, Beach Handball men and women, the Beach Tennis men’s team and one swimmer.

The teams have been intensifying training with the Kite Boarding representative having his session in Mombasa, the woman’s Half Marathoner Florence Nduku Malyunga is training in Machakos while the men’s marathoner Charles Yosey Mneria conducting his fitness in Eldoret.

The Rowing flag bearer Emmanuel Muriithi Mburu is training in Ruiru under the watchful eyes of Jacob Oner Owako, James Mwangi the Karateka is training in Nairobi, the men’s and women’s Beach Volleyball teams are having their session at the Nairobi’s Strathmore University while the men’s and women’s handball, men’s soccer and men’s tennis team are training in Mombasa.

The women’s Beach Volleyball team is led by experienced Gaudencia Makokha who will pair with Naomie Too while the corresponding men’s team will be comprised of Ibrahim Oduor Odindo and James Gathua Mwaniki.

A total of 54 countries will compete in the continental assignment that will involve 11 different sports with up to 1000 athletes expected to descend on the island of Sal.

The games will get underway with the Beach Handball, Beach Tennis, Karate as well as Rowing and Canoeing on 14th June 2019.

-Team Kenya-

Beach Soccer – Men

Daido Manase, Michael Shaban Kamau, Patrick Imani Isaac, Farid Mbwana Bwana, Hudheifa Omar Mchulla, Adamson Saa Raphael, Moustafa Hassan Tayebali, Fahad Nasir Salim, Rajab Chai Hamisi, Paul Kavula

Handball

Women; Winny Chepkoech, Magdaline Muthoni, Michelle Adhiambo Oyoo, Euphrasia Mukasia, Sharon Chepkirui, Racheal Karisa, Kombe Neema Nzai, Faith Mueni Nzilani, Hannah Wacheke.

Men; Thodosia Sangoro Ngala, Derick Odhiambo, Victor Ouma Nyongesa, Mzee Mohamed, Mutuku Kyalo, Nickson Oguna, Salmin P. Mwalegha, David Ogwedhi Nyadiero, Emmanuel Amani Charo.

Karate; James Mwangi Gikonyo.

Tennis (Men); Fazal Mohamed Khan, Ibrahim Kibet Yego.

Swimming; Nurayn Mohamed Bagha.

Beach Volleyball; Gaudencia Nakhumicha Makokha, Naomie Too,Ibrahim Oduor Odindo, James Gathua Mwaniki.

Kite Boarding; John Koyiet Nzioka.

Athletics; Florence Nduku Malyunga (Men), Charles Yosey Mneria (Women).

Rowing; Emmanuel Muriithi Mburu

Medical

Carole Mary Akinyi Okoth, Joyce Nduku Mbithi, Emily Cherono Koskei, Joseph Kolli, Jackson Njoroge Kimani.

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PARIS, France, Jun 9 – Sports Cabinet Secretary Ambassador Amina Mohammed on Sunday afternoon visited the Harambee Stars training camp at the French Rugby Federation Centre in Marcoussis, Paris where she had a first-hand view of how the team is preparing for the African Cup of Nations.

Amina who met the players last Friday just before their friendly match against Madagascar at the Stade Robert Bobin wanted to see just how the players are training and the services at the facility something that she was pleased with.

“At least we have seen where our money is going and I can say that this is good value for money. I am happy with how the team is preparing,” Amina said after touring and visiting the players.

Here are some images from her tour.

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NAIROBI, Kenya, June 9 – Wazito FC returned to the Kenyan Premier League joined by Kisumu All Stars after finishing first and second respectively in the National Super League 2018/19 season that concluded Sunday.

Meanwhile, Nairobi Stima beat Eldoret Youth 4-2 to finish third and set up the KPL promotion playoff against Posta Rangers.

To win the trophy that was stretched down to the wire, Wazito ripped apart St Joseph’s Youth FC 7-0 at the Nairobi’s Camp Toyoyo while Kisumu handed relegated Thika United a 6-1 thrashing to earn automatic promotion to the top flight league.

The three teams came into the final round separated only by a single point with Wazito holding the advantage that saw them conclude the season as the best team with 81 points, just one aheadof Kisumu who finished second.

Dates for the second legged KPL promotion playoff are yet to be confirmed but the fact that no second tier side has ever claimed victory in the playoff against the top tier opposition could be difficult reading for Stima who narrowly missed out on the slot in last season’s campaign where they finished 4th.

Ushuru FC, who this season missed out on a top 3 finish having finished in 4th place, have played in the playoffs twice in succession. Losing to Thika United in 2017 and Nakumatt FC in 2018.

At the opposite end of the table, Kangemi All Stars, Thika and Green Commandos have been confirmed as the relegation casualties.

-Final round results-

Kenya Police 2-2 Ushuru (Karuturi Grounds)

Migori Youth 2-0 Kangemi All-Stars (Awendo Stadium)

Fortune Sacco vs Modern Coast Rangers (Kianyaga Stadium)

Kibera Black Stars 1-2 Nairobi City Stars (Hope Center)

Green Commandos vs Coast Stima (Bukhungu Stadium)

Wazito 7-1 St. Joseph’s Youth (Camp Toyoyo)

Administration Police vs Bidco United (Ruaraka Grounds)

Thika United 1-7 Kisumu All Stars (Thika Stadium)

Shabana 3-1 FC Talanta (Gusii Stadium)

Eldoret Youth 2-4 Nairobi Stima (Eldoret Show Grounds)

-Additional reporting from Soka.co.ke-

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PARIS, France, June 10 – Sports Cabinet Secretary Amina Mohammed says the government will invest more on putting up high level sporting infrastructure, outlining this will be one key ingredient of ensuring national teams perform better at international competitions.

The CS pointed out she was challenged after visiting the National Centre of Rugby in Marcoussis, Paris where Harambee Stars is putting up a three-week training camp for the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON)

“Yes, we are encouraged to spend more on federations, but more importantly on infrastructure. It is amazing that you can have such a facility and now that we are trying to make Kasarani and Nyayo, I can see the standard to which we must bring all infrastructure and facilities,” Amina told Capital Sport in France.

“Touring this facility has been a real eye opener and informative. I have learnt quite a lot on what needs to be put in place for a team to have the support it needs to participate internationally. These are lessons and good practices we will take back which we think we should emulate. Maybe not same scale but similar fashion, we have learnt what makes teams great,” she further stated.

The National Rugby Centre in Marcoussis is a complete training complex with all manner of facilities and equipment including three outdoor pitches, one indoor one, two separate gyms, a recovery pool among other facilities used at top level training.

The venue was selected by Stars head coach Sebastien Migne, a native of France.

It is tucked away 35km from the capital Paris and is in a serene, quiet and secluded region, far away from distraction and intrusion.

The centre is used by all French national rugby teams including the men and women’s 7s and 15s teams as well as the junior sides. The French Rugby Federation (FFR) also hires out the facility to different teams wishing to train there.

Most famously, the FFR complex in Marcoussis hosted the Portugal national team when they won the Euros hosted in France in 2016 with Cristiano Ronaldo and Co completely shutting down the expansive facility and roads adjacent to train.

Amina says she was pleased that the amount of money they spent on Harambee Stars has been put to good use and believes the complex has given good value for money. She was taken round the entire facility from the players’ rooms, dining area, meeting rooms, gyms, recovery area and the pitch.

The government gave Stars a budget of Sh244mn, a huge chunk of which was channeled to acquiring the Marcoussis facility.

“This is absolutely good (value for money). I am happy I came and I can see what this money has done. It’s the first time we are spending such amounts of money on a national team and at least we can show this as an example, as a model going forward that the money provided by government is put to good use,”

“I had a session with the players and they are pleased with the support they are getting and the facility so we are happy that it’s money well spent. Already we can see the fruits of the support we gave after the Madagascar game,” Amina stated.

Meanwhile, FKF president has said the onus is now on the team to ensure they translate that support received from the government to results on the pitch when they head out to Egypt for the Cup of Nations next week.

“This is a first in football. The cooperation between government and federation before hasn’t been where it is supposed to be but now you can see that government has not only funded us but is here to see what work we are doing to ensure that the support is there and available,”

“I can only say thank you and we will continue to do the good job. We have received the best support and the players can say that the job is only beginning. There is a big job to be done,” Mwendwa commented.

Amina has promised the players that she will be there in Egypt to give them the necessary support as they aim to do well in their first Cup of Nations since 2004.

-Timothy Olobulu is reporting from Paris, France- 

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PARIS, France, June 10 – Harambee Stars defender Brian Mandela has warned that Kenya will be no easy opponent at the African Cup of Nations (AFCON) when the tournament kicks-off June 21 in Cairo, Egypt.

Harambee Stars will kick off their campaign two days later against Algeria’s Desert Foxes and being in a group that also has Senegal and Tanzania, Mandela has warned anyone underrating Stars that they are in for a rude shock.

“Everyone in the team is looking forward to having a good tournament in Egypt and we are going there to do our best. We will be no pushovers and we will pull to the best of our abilities to represent Kenya in the best way we can,” Mandela stated.

“We ask our fans to continue supporting us like they did during the qualifiers and our promise to them is that we are going to give them something good back at home,” further added the South Africa based centre half.

On the tough group that Kenya faces; “Yes it is a very tough group with two very good teams and a derby awaiting us against Tanzania, but we are ready for it. We are ready to face them and fight for victory.”

Stars have been camping in Paris, France at the National Rugby Centre in Marcoussis and Mandela says bringing the team here has been a masterstroke as it has helped boost their morale and everyone now has no reason not to go into the pitch and bleed for the country.

The team has been in Marcoussis from May 31 and is expected to depart on June 18 for Cairo.

“As players this is quite a huge motivation because this is something that happens rarely in Kenya. You can see the morale in the players and the happiness that such kind of a thing has brought to us,”

“We have gelled well as a team and we are like brothers here. One thing that helped us qualify was the togetherness and teamwork and being here has only made it stronger. Hopefully we carry this on to Egypt and we go do our best,” he stated.

Mandela is coming off a tough season in South Africa where he just but managed to help his club Maritzburg United survive relegation after topping the three-team round robin play-off to maintain their Premier Soccer League (PSL) status.

But, the former Tusker FC and Posta Rangers defender has chosen to look at it on the opposite way counting it as a successful season.

“The season built the character in me and my teammates because we had to be strong mentally when things were thick. In such situations, you are forced to think outside the box and that is what helped us to survive,”

“We are happy to remain in the league and now for me is to focus on AFCON then think about the new season now,” he added.

The defender who has been in South Africa for five years now has been linked with a move to giants Kaizer Chiefs and champions Mamelodi Sundowns but says he has not put that in his mind at the moment.

-Timothy Olobulu is reporting from Paris, France- 

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Montreal, Canada, Jun 10 – Ferrari said Sunday they will appeal against the five-second penalty that cost Sebastian Vettel victory in the Canadian Grand Prix.

Five-time Formula One world champion Lewis Hamilton maintained Mercedes’ record winning start to the season when he was handed the controversial victory courtesy of a disputed stewards’ decision, despite crossing the finish line just behind the German.

Vettel was deemed to have forced a charging Hamilton towards a wall after running off at a chicane and rejoining across a strip of grass.

The Briton had to brake and pull out of his overtaking manoeuvre, prompting the stewards to impose the time penalty on Vettel.

“Where could I go?” protested Vettel. “They’re stealing the race from us.”

Ferrari team principal Mattia Binotto later said the team would be appealing against the penalty.

“At the moment, we, as a team, are naturally disappointed,” said Binotto in a statement posted on the Ferrari official website.

“As for Seb, I don’t think he could have done things differently, which is why we have decided to appeal the Stewards’ decision.”

Under the sport’s regulations, Ferrari have 96 hours from the end of the race to gather evidence to support their appeal.

Vettel drove his car back to the garage instead of into parc ferme and refused to attend the post-race interviews.

He stormed off to the Ferrari motor home before being persuaded by his team to return for the podium ceremonies.

On the way he walked into parc ferme and swapped the number one for the winner from in front of Hamilton’s Mercedes with the number two in front of the empty space for his car.

The pro-Ferrari crowd booed Hamilton on the podium, but Vettel told them: “Don’t boo Lewis –- you should boo these decisions, not him.”

It was a record seventh victory in Canada for Hamilton and the 78th of his career. It extended Mercedes’ season-opening run to seven successive wins.

Vettel was classified second ahead of his Ferrari team-mate Leclerc.

Valtteri Bottas was fourth in the second Mercedes followed by Max Verstappen of Red Bull and Daniel Ricciardo of Renault.

Hamilton had suffered problems before the start. A hydraulics leak, discovered in the morning, required two hours to strip down and repair his power unit and then a slow getaway for the formation lap created more alarm.

But as the start lights went out, he kept cool to resist Leclerc and stay within sight of Vettel who built a lead of 1.6 seconds on the opening lap from pole position.

Tyre wear was a key factor on the Isle Notre-Dame as track temperatures touched 50 Celsius and Hamilton bided his time.

Vettel pitted from the lead for hard tyres on lap 25 and rejoined in third leaving Hamilton to push on his worn rubber as Vettel clocked the fastest lap behind new leader Leclerc.

Leclerc led Vettel by 11.4sec on lap 30 but three laps later the gap was slashed to five seconds prompting Ferrari to bring in the Monegasque.

Vettel led again by 2.3sec from Hamilton, who had also pitted, with Verstappen third, 10sec adrift as Leclerc rejoined in fourth. But on his fresh hard tyres, Hamilton looked revitalised and closed in on the German.

Vettel responded with another fastest lap but with Hamilton applying constant pressure he finally twitched under braking at the first chicane with 22 laps of the 70-lap race to go, forcing him to cut across a strip of grass before squeezing Hamilton towards the wall.

Stewards deemed him guilty of an “unsafe re-entry forcing another driver off the track” and the five-second penalty decided the outcome as Hamilton crossed the line 1.342sec behind Vettel.

“Where could I go?” said an angry Vettel on team radio. “I had nowhere to go… They are stealing the race from us… This is the wrong world. This is not fair.”

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NAIROBI, Kenya, June 10 – Despite giving his all to ensure the Kenya Sevens team retained its core status at the prestigious HSBC Sevens World Series, seasoned player Andrew Amonde has attributed the fight to teamwork displayed by his charges.  

Amonde played a key role on and off the pitch especially in Paris where his experience counted to ensure Shujaa stay afloat in next seasons World Sevens Series, a competition they have featured since its inaugural in 1999-2000.

Heading to the final leg in Paris, Kenya needed to reach at-least Cup Quarters to assure themselves survival against Wales and Japan, after only managing to collect one point from the penultimate leg in London.

“It was collective work from the team, we backed up ourselves and we did it, we knew when we left the country what was at stake. After the London tour, reality checked on us about relegation because we only picked one point,” Amonde, a former Shujaa skipper revealed.

The 35-year-old added; “Going for Paris, we knew we had to go all out and get results, fortunately things went our way but its not the results we wanted. We were lucky to survive, and we thank God for it.”

“After we made it to the Cup Quarters, we were sure of survival and good thing is after Japan and Wales dropped to the Bowl In general, the season has been tough.”

Head coach, Paul Murunga, who had a rough season in his first term since being appointed the boss of the technical bench, pointed out the lack of experience as major downfall that saw the team only manage to reach one quarter-final in the 10 rounds they played.

“We are happy for the Paris 7s performance that ensured Kenya remain as a core status, the result was huge and meant a lot. In the better part of the season, we lacked experience from our seasoned players, but I am happy that we were able to expose and give a chance to new blood.

I have picked some lessons from this season’s performance one being that we need early preparations and more sponsors to come on board. The boys were ready for the challenge and we believed, we really wanted to win, facing Wales it meant we must beat them to survive.

Kenya will now shift attention to the 2020 Olympic Games qualifier slated for November in Johannesburg where the Shujaa will be out to seek to join South Africa as Africa representatives in the Summer Games.

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