Kenya Lionesses are looking forward to renewing their rivalry with continental heavyweights Zimbabwe and Uganda in the 23rd edition of the Safari Sevens tournament to be hosted by KRU at the Nyayo National Stadium starting this Friday.

 Lionesses were the sole African side in the Tokyo 2020 Olympics and will be top seeded as they seek to claim the women’s title first played in 2004 at RFUEA Grounds.

 Kenya last met Zimbabwe on October 13, 2019 when Lionesses claimed a 36-5 win in the Olympics African qualifiers to make a crucial entry into the semi-finals where Kenya annihilated the hosts Tunisia 19-0 to reach the cup finals to earn the ticket to Tokyo.

 Two-time Olympian Sheila Chajira expressed the excitement of playing in front of the loud fans who have always been an integral part of the growth of women’s rugby.

 “We are excited by the return of Safari Sevens and when the government last week announced the return of fans, it was a double joy.

We have stepped up our preparations and we await to give the fans what they have longed for.

“It will be a good weekend of rugby when we meet our neighbours Uganda and Zimbabwe.

It has been a while we brawled because of the Covid-19 pandemic but this week we will be reunited,” the Lionesses forward told People Sport. 

 Another exciting match up to watch out for in the women’s competition will be the rivalry of Lionesses A and B when they meet in the round robin event where South Africa’s select women’s side will bring in the element of surprise as very little is known of the team.

 The Lionesses this year have had a good number of exposures and have registered shocking wins against world rivals from invitational tournaments that kicked off in Spain with Madrid Sevens cup to the 2020 Tokyo Olympics where the team finished 10th. 

 The tournament has been known to attract thousands of Kenyan fans and top Kenyan politicians in the past editions.

VIP Tickets retail at Sh2,000 per day for adults, while kids 12 and above will pay Sh1,000.  

 The regulars who opt to spend less watching the games and more on the party will only pay Sh500 for entry a day.

The tickets can be bought via a Safaricom USSD code *229*95# or via the M-ticket.