Thursday 21 June 2012

Why A Paradigm Shift Is Needed To Rescue Kenyan Football

In the 1988 Olympics in Seoul, South Korea; Kenya against all odds garnered 5 Gold medals and became the most successful Olympics for Kenya. In the same year, The People’s Republic of China also won 5 Gold Medals and finished in eleventh position, two places above Kenya.

When addressing the returning Olympiads in Beijing, The Chinese Head of State at the time Mr. Yang Shangkun Made a statement of intent by proclaiming his vision of seeing China dominate the Olympics within 15 years.

At the time, The Soviet Union, East Germany and USA were the undisputed Olympic leaders but China set up a well-oiled machine that shook the Athletics world when they hosted the Olympics in 2008. They not only overtook USA and Russia but managed to win the games through a myriad of events a record in the Olympics.

My point is, China dared to dream but it did not end there, they threw vast resources into their strategy and ensured they stayed on course through thick and thin to succeed. Granted, there a lot of people who think China cheated on their way to glory but thats not the point here.

Football is not just a game in Kenya, its more than just a sport, it’s a source of national pride and without a doubt the single most potent route to national cohesion. When Harambee Stars play, we all forget about our tribes and our flag becomes our symbol of unity. Why then is our football rotten? How come the Government doesn’t see the opportunity it has to cement our national cohesion and pride?

Reality

An average Kenya Premier League footballer is paid between Kes 20-25,000 per month. Walks to training and can hardly afford 3 quality meals a day. It’s a shame when you take a look at the training pitches some of the KPL clubs use with hardly no facilities. The most basic facilities like Urinals and bathrooms are non-existent leave alone quality training gear.

Only 3 clubs in the KPL have a fully qualified Physiotherapist in their ranks and once a player gets a minor injury in training, he will be ruled out for up to a month. Is it a wonder then that our player’s careers nose dive after reaching 25 years?

Fitness is part and parcel of being a professional footballer but it’s sad to note that NOT A SINGLE CLUB in the KPL monitor the fitness of their players scientifically as is common across the world. Recently, a renowned Physio told me that he treated a few Harambee Stars players and opined that NON OF THE Players were physically fit. He mentioned all these players had among many deficiencies tight hamstrings (meaning not flexible enough) and almost all carried very little muscle to withstand the rigours of a 10 month long league to enable them maintain a high level of fitness.

Nutrition is also non-existent in Kenyan football and our players do not understand what Protein, Carbohydrates or Essential fatty acids means or reacts to their bodies. Heck, they cannot even afford 3 normal meals a day.

Are we surprised then to find out only 3 Kenyans have successfully advanced in European football out of a thousand and one trialists?

Aren’t we raving mad to pin our national hope on a group of players who are so disadvantaged from the onset compared to their rivals? Are we realistic to expect our mules to go faster than thorough bred horses? Is this not the time to take a deep breath and find out what the rest of the world is doing right?

This is the time Our Government and FKF need to come up with a 10-15 year plan to resurrect football/sports in Kenya by investing in the following areas;

1.       Coaching and Nutrition: Our PE teachers from primary schools should be trained to be able to teach our children how to play football, understand tactics, acquire ball handling skills, improve their speed, agility etc. The same P.E teachers can be taught basic nutrition and they can pass over to our kids. Our kids will grow up understanding the ingredients of success.

2.       Equipment:  Is it surprising that most of our footballers started wearing boots later on in their careers? The Government need to invest in proper training gears including basic agility training tools. Again, a crucial ingredient for success.

3.       Academy of Excellence: We have national schools that admit the cream of students in Kenya. Why not convert 3-5 of these schools into Academies of Sport Excellence. These will be where our best athletes find advanced training in their sports while pursuing academic excellence too. Imagine 500 or more graduates every year from these academies.We can rule the world.

4.       Referees & match officials: How can our youngsters achieve sporting excellence without qualified, ethical referees and match officials. This is one of the Achilles heels of our sport and the government and FKF should ensure that we produce consistently top referees and match officials.

5.       Stadia & Training fields: There are a lot of football/sports fields across the country but they are hardly maintained. Imagine having our youngsters honing their skills in well-manicured fields. Does it take a lot to maintain? Hardly.

Finally, the most defining change has to come from our leaders in Government and Sport. They have to recognise that our national pride is at stake and petty thoughts should be left out and a brand new future developed from the grassroots up.

Omar Yusuf
@omarym on twitter

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