Sports Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen has acknowledged significant pressure on Kenya to meet the Confederation of African Football (CAF) deadline of Tuesday, December 31, to have Kasarani and Nyayo Stadiums ready for the 2024 African Nations Championship (CHAN).
Kenya is slated to co-host the tournament with neighboring countries Uganda and Tanzania. In preparation, renovations are underway at Moi International Sports Centre, Kasarani, and Nyayo National Stadium, designated as the Kenyan venues. Additionally, Ulinzi Sports Complex and Police Sacco Stadium, identified as training grounds, are also undergoing upgrades.
However, progress on the facilities has fallen behind schedule, raising concerns as the delayed 2024 CHAN is now set to take place in February 2025.
Speaking to NTV, Murkomen admitted that the decision to bid for CHAN might not have been the best choice given the current circumstances.
“If you ask me, it was not necessary for us to host CHAN. That pressure was not needed at this point in time. Hosting AFCON was fantastic because we have enough time,” said the CS.
Murkomen also suggested that Kenya should have limited its bid to one stadium instead of two, a move that has increased the strain on preparations.
“The CHAN bid is independent of the AFCON bid. In hindsight, it was a mistake. Even Uganda and Tanzania, which have ready stadiums, only offered one stadium each.
For us, we were overly ambitious, considering that we didn’t have a single stadium ready at the time,” he explained.
The CS further revealed that Kenya had disregarded expert advice cautioning against bidding for CHAN due to inadequate infrastructure.
“With proper reflection, I think when we were bidding, we should have focused on AFCON and not CHAN. There were experts who advised us against CHAN, but I think we got too excited because we hadn’t hosted such a tournament in a long time,” he stated.
