Swimming trials for XXII Commonwealth Games underway at Kasarani

The Kenya Swimming Federation has begun its long course National Swimming Championships expected to run from 6th May-8th May 2022 at the Kasarani Stadium 50M modern aquatic Complex.

The center will see Kenya’s best and most able swimmers gather from their bases in the country and abroad. Swimmers will be aiming to improve their times, race against the best athletes from Kenya and abroad and the best will be vying for places at the XXII Commonwealth Games 2022 in England, the Africa Youth Games 2022 in Cairo and the FINA World Swimming Championships 2022 in Hungary.

Jen Maina, the head of the Interim Management Committee of the Kenya Swimming Federation assured Kenyans that all is in place to select the best team to represent the country at the Commonwealth Games.

“We are hoping to take as many swimmers as we can take, because the bigger the team the better chances we have and the more the motivation but as of now we have 15 swimmers that have attained 600 FINA Points. That is history, so we are looking to see that swimmers will achieve the 600 points from this specific event.” She said,

The event having been on the calendar all year, she explained that psychologically the athletes were ready and understood what is at stake.

 Big names such as Emily Muteti who was recently at the Tokyo Olympic Games and Becky Kamau who represented Kenya at the 2019 Africa Games held in Rabat, Morocco and won bronze medal in the women’s 4x100m medley relay are also in participation.

One of the greatest stories of the day has to be of Imara-Bella Thorpe.

Forty years ago, an 18-year-old boy, Conrad Thorpe, captained the Kenya Swimming Team to the 1982 XII Commonwealth Games in Brisbane, Australia. Racing in the 200m Individual Medley as well as the 100m and 200m breastroke. Although they didn’t bring gold home, they brought glory to Kenya. Chest thumping and swelling of pride, sweet memories of months of sacrifices covering hundreds of Kilometers in coffee dams and rivers.

Forty years later, the young boy has a daughter aged twenty-one. At nineteen months, even before she could speak a word, she was in the pool and months later she could swim without a floater.

The young girl has an opportunity to swim in the XXII Commonwealth Games in Birmingham. Forty years later, same time as her dad, she hopes she can race and swim and catch all her dreams

“My dad is my biggest inspiration. I always want to make him proud; I can’t believe exactly forty years ago he represented our country. Isn’t that just fate?’’ Imara-Bella Thorpe said,” I also want to take a year off after the Commonwealth Games to go and fully prepare for the Olympic Games in Paris 2024. So those are my two top targets.”

The three-day event will have races: 800 Freestyle, 50 Backstroke, 100 Breaststroke, 50 Butterfly, 200 Freestyle, 400IM, 4X100 Free Relay, Day 2 will see 200 Backstroke, 50 Breaststroke, 200 Butterfly, 100  Freestyle, 200 Breaststroke, 4x50 Medley Relay and day three, 1500 Freestyle, 200IM, 100  Butterfly 50 Freestyle and  4X200 Freestyle Relay.

The Championship promises to be the best swimming event in the National Calendar this year. VIPs such as the Cabinet Secretary for Sports, Culture and Heritage AMB. Dr. Amina Mohamed and Principal Secretary Mr. Joe Okudo CBS are expected to grace the event.