Kipchumba Murkomen on Thursday took over the Sports Ministry under the baptism of fire after senators, including those allied to the United Democratic Alliance (UDA), termed Kenya's performance in the ongoing Paris 2024 Olympics heartbreaking.
Speaking on the floor of the Senate, Majority Leader Aaron Cheruiyot noted that he was most appalled when Team Kenya athletes in the 3000 and 1500 Steeplechase lost to their competitors, noting that the races were previously synonymous with Kenya.
As a result, he noted that Murkomen has a clear work cut out for him to improve Kenya's sportsmanship and restore the country's Olympic glory.
"The performance of Team Kenya at the Paris Olympics has been nothing short of heartbreaking. As a fan of athletics, I do not recall a time that we have performed as dismally as we have done in this Olympics," he stated.
"I know there are a few races that are yet to be concluded but it broke my heart to see Kenya lose the 3000 Steeplechase and 1500 Steeplechase, races that we have previously dominated and have come to be associated with Kenya as a republic."
"Therefore, the new CS for Sports, Kipchumba Murkomen, has his work properly cut out. We must guide the country in the proper direction," he added.
Cheruiyot challenged the incoming CS to integrate science into training athletes to enhance their talents on the international level.
He argued that several international athletes train at Iten grounds before leaving for their countries to integrate the training with technological advancement, a key factor the Kenyan ecosystem lacks.
"The truth of the matter, whether we like it or not, is that science has caught up with talent. While many of our athletes are talented and therefore can make do despite our disorganisation, the science of running where athletes come into this country, train with us in Iten then disappear in January to practice for the final race is that those people have learnt how to do this even though they are not as talented as our athletes.
"Therefore, we must also come up with better solutions on how to manage our athletes, it even starts with how we treat these athletes," he added.
Cheruiyot was supporting a motion moved by Nominated Senator Crystal Asige who wants the Ministry of Labour probed over the poor performance.
Asige believes that poor social welfare for the athletes contributed to their poor performance. Her motion was backed by UDA-nominated Senator Veronica Maina and her Nairobi counterpart Edwin Sifuna, who is a member of ODM.
"We have not invested in sports. The last meaningful national and international stadia were built by (former) President Daniel Moi," Sifuna posed.
"We football fans missed a critical fixture between Harambee Stars and the African champions, Cote d'Ivoire because it had to be played in Malawi. It was very embarrassing."
So far, Kenya has bagged five medals including 1 gold, 1 silver, and 3 bronze.
