Revered youth coach Ngisirei urges AK to prepare teams better for future championships

Athletics Kenya (AK) national youth coach Robert Ngisirei has called on the federation to make better plans for the national teams ahead of major championships so that athletes can have the best environment to prepare and compete. 

Coach Ngisirei guided the Kenya World Under-20 Athletics Championship team in Cali, Colombia where they surrendered the overall title they had won in 2018 and 2021 after finishing fourth with three gold, three silver and four bronze medals. 

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For a start, the tactician faults the federation for holding the trials too close to the competition, leaving little time for residential camp and for qualified athletes to have their travel documentation sorted. 

"In some instances we were forced to make changes in the squad since the qualified athletes had no travel documents and there was little time to have that sorted. Case in point, the men's 800m. 

We had scheduled the trials earlier but changes were made and we had the selection much later. That meant less time in residential camp part of which was used to sort out documentation as opposed to training for a majority of the athletes," Ngisirei explained. 

The tactician, who says he consulted widely with coaches from other nations that did better than Kenya and confirmed that they had better preparations, called on AK to have the trials at least a month before scheduled travel. 

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Additionally, the tactician challenged AK to have the athletes get exposure prior to the next championships. 

While part of the team that competed in Cali had the opportunity to train in France for a month, Ngisirei believes what is needed more is to have these athletes competing with their peers internationally.

"Our athletes have to compete internationally before these championships. This will ensure they have the experience to compete on such a stage, as opposed to being thrust into the limelight which is highly likely to give some jitters and affect performance," Ngisirei explained. 

With diet an important part of an athlete's preparation for any competition, the tactician feels that AK should make better plans for their athletes whenever they leave the country as opposed to leaving their diet options at the mercy of hotels accommodating teams. 

"Some of these athletes were surving on the snacks they had managed to bring with them as the food provided was too foreign. There was no variety or foods thet are slightly familiar with and that affected many who are not well travelled. It is important for AK to make it their business to ensure that athletes are well catered for abroad," he added.