2023 International Women’s day: Celebration of female game-changers in the sporting landscape

International Women's Day is an occasion to commemorate and honor the extraordinary accomplishments, courageous deeds, and tenacity of millions of women worldwide. A number of sportswomen have defied the male-dominated field through outstanding athleticism, the battle for equality, or the field of sports medicine and are writing history.

Mozzart Sport presents in no particular order a list of exemplary female athletes and personalities that are notable for flexing their strength and changing the ball game for women and sports.

1. Angella Okutoyi

The tennis sensation became a household name in 2018 when she won six major championships. She made history by becoming the first Kenyan girl to win an Australian Open juniors match and the first to go past the second round at a Grand Slam tournament. She ended her grand slam with a third-round finish.

The 19-year-old has already featured in the Junior Australian Open and Roland Garros was ranked in the ITF Top 100 Junior Ranking. She is expected to represent Kenya at the US Open Junior Tournament this year where she will be making a last appearance as a junior.

2. Peris Mukoko

Kenya Rugby Union Board Director Peris Mukoko was a member of the first-ever Kenyan women’s national team. Mukoko hung up the boots and picked up a whistle before she went on to break the ground as a match official. She worked as an assistant referee during the Rugby Africa Gold Cup 2017 and has subsequently shared her knowledge as Kenya’s first female match official instructor in Kenya recognized by World Rugby.

She was co-opted into the Union’s board to become one of the first female representatives on the board together with Wangui Kibe. Last year, Mukoko decided to vie for the position of Kenya Rugby Union Vice Chair she was defeated by her opponent Moses Ndale. The elections were however declared null and void by the Sports Disputes Tribunal, and the date for the by-election will be communicated.

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3. Janeth Jepkosgei

Even though Janeth Jepkosgei switched gears from being an athlete to a coach and mentor, she is still a heroine. The middle-distance runner has a camp is located around 2.5 kilometers away from the Kabsabet - Nandi Road. Twenty teenage runners have been granted free use of the camp, a van that transports them to the track facilities, and part of their long runs.

Four runners in the camp recently qualified for the World Athletics U20 Championships in Nairobi. They are Emmanuel Wanyonyi who won gold in the men’s 800m, Sylvia Chelangat who claimed bronze in the women’s 400m, and Levy Kibet won another gold in the men’s 5000m. Jepkosgei was also among the Kenyan coaches given charge by World Athletics to manage the team during the World Cross Country Championships in Bathurst, Australia.

4. Esther Kimani

The Posta Rangers team bus is driven by this superwoman. Kimani has been driving the team's bus for more than five years, making sure the players get to their games on time.

She has training from the NYS and is armed with a driving license. Since her initial job as a small truck driver in 1997, Kimani has had more than 20 years of driving experience. She even drove the bosses for 20 years before being exposed to football through Rangers in 2017.

5. Redemptor Chepwogen

Commonly known as Red, the 24-year-old is the Kabras RFC physiotherapist. Red is a physiotherapist by profession and is concerned with human function, movement, and maximizing the physical potential of Kabras RFC’s players. Once a player is injured, she plays a great role in rehabilitating him/her back to their pre-injury state.

Red is part of the team that has led Kabras to win all their matches this season. Kabras RFC have not tasted a loss this season and will welcome arch-rivals KCB RFC for the finals on Saturday 11 at the Kakamega Showground.

6. Sheila Chajira

Olympian Sheila Chajira is breaking down barriers in Kenyan Rugby. She has represented Kenya at both the Rio 2016 and Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games. Although she is not ready to hang her boots yet, Chajira took up a strength and conditioning course to help the next generation of potential women’s rugby players in Kenya.

In December 2021, she attended a World Rugby S &C course hosted by the Kenya Rugby Union. Of the 11 participants, four were male. The double Olympian is hoping to help as many teams in her journey as an S & C coach.

7. Philadelphia Orlando

The two-time Olympian and Kenya Lionesses skipper landed a job at Emirati Women’s Rugby Team in Dubai when she was appointed as the Head Coach of the UAE national team. Prior to landing her new position, Orlando was with the national team, Lionesses for 13 years.

She is assisting the various coaching teams within the setup while also managing the on-field Women's Rugby program and the growth of girls' rugby in her new role.