AK urged to create mentorship programmes for young athletes

NAKURU, Kenya, Nov 18 – Athletics stakeholders at consultative forum in Keringet, Nakuru have asked Athletics Kenya (AK) to establish mentorship programmes involving retired and young athletes.

They said such mentorship will keep the younger ones on track with their goals and remain active for a long time.

Former Commonwealth Games 3,000m steeplechase champion Richard Matelong urged young athletes to always listen to their seniors and receptive to advice on matters to do with sport and their social welfare.

“We have good talent in this region, and we are happy that the federation has gone to the grassroots to seek opinions on how to improve the sport. Young athletes should be ready to listen to their seniors and always be disciplined for a good career,” said Matelong.

He asked the federation to continually check on upcoming athletes so that they can keep abreast of the issues affecting them.

“In the past, we have seen the federation holding seminars, which were only targeting a few people.  This time around, they are visiting all the regions concentrated with athletes which is the only way going forward to address emerging issues,” he said.

The former champion also applauded the county government for building a training facility in the region.

He proposed a census of athletes who need help and to create a kitty to help them.

“We have athletes who are struggling to make the ends meet and the national government should come up with a plan on how they can support the upcoming athletes because they need food for them to train well. Going forward, we need to make sure the sport is given a budget for such issues,” added Matelong.

Athletes also said that 90 percent of them cannot access training facilities and have been training along the roads.

Nickson Koech, road runner in the county, said they face challenges in terms of transport and registration.We normally ask friends and relatives to help us with some cash so that we can travel to various regions for competitions. Sometimes it takes time to pay the borrowed cash which becomes a problem for us,” Koech said.   

The second cluster ended in Keringet with the third one kicking off on Monday with athletes expected to converge in Eldama Ravine, Baringo County.