‘Investing in youth sports the way out’

Dar es Salaam. There is a need for Tanzania to cultivate a culture of unearthing and grooming young talents if it is to restore its lost glory in high-profile competitions, says Kenyan athletics legend Kipchoge Keino.

Keino, the two-time Olympics gold medalist, has singled out lack of adequate investment in youth sports as the major factor behind the country’s poor performance in the Olympic and Commonwealth Games.

In an interview with The Citizen on Sunday, Keino said he believes that Tanzania has many talented athletes who only need grooming and exposure to excel on the international stage.

“I still believe that there are many talented athletes out there of Filbert Bayi’s quality,” said the Kenyan.

“The country just needs more commitment and workable strategies to tap this talent which goes to waste,” he added.

The track and field legend said this a day after handing over the Queen’s Baton to the Tanzania Olympic Committee (TOC) president, Rashid Gulam.

It was later presented to President Jakaya Kikwete at the State House before being taken to Zanzibar. After a three-day tour of the country, it left for South Africa yesterday. Keino also advised the government to reserve playing grounds for the youth, saying they give tomorrow’s sports stars with an avenue to showcase their untapped talents.

He said it was time the government built many venues in rural areas and encouraged young players to engage in sports to unearth the country’s new generation of sports stars.

It was during the 1968 Olympics in Mexico City that Keino announced his arrival on the world stage.

He was one of the stars of the games as he cruised to victory in the final of the 1,500 metres, crushing the favourite and then world record holder, America’s Jim Ryun, in the process.

“I took off in the third lap and opened a gap. In the final lap, I was 40 metres ahead and they only closed to 20 metres,” he says of his now legendary victory.

Keino’s Olympics success saw him become a household name across the globe and a hero to people all over Africa.

In a glittering career that followed, he won a 3,000 metre gold in the 1972 Olympics in Munich, Germany, as well as three gold medals in the Commonwealth Games. He was also the first African to run a mile in under four minutes and hold the world records for both the 3,000 and 5,000 metre events.

But with his track career now well and truly behind him, the 71-year-old now spends his time focusing on his other passions -- namely philanthropy and encouraging Africa’s next generation of star athletes.