Ten sporting events to look forward to this year
By Christopher Owuor, January 11, 2021
Tokyo Paralympics – Japan
The 16th Paralympics Games will be held in Tokyo, just days after the completion of the Olympics Games.
They are scheduled for August 24 to September 5. Tokyo will be the first city to host the Summer Paralympics twice, having held the event in 1964.
There are 22 sports on the programme as taekwondo and badminton are set to debut.
Euro 2020 – Europe
Euro 2020, postponed due to the Covid-19 outbreak, will kick off on June 11. It will be held in 12 cities in 12 different European countries.
The semifinals and final are scheduled for Wembley Stadium.
World Indoor Tour – Europe /North America
Following the postponement of the World Athletics Indoor championship which was slated for March 19 to 21 in Nanjing, China to March 2023, athletes will have the Indoor Tour to give them competition opportunities as they prepare for the Olympics.
World Indoor Tour comprises 26 meetings spread across 12 countries in Europe and North America.
It will run from the end of January to end of February and is organised across three different tiers, Gold, Silver and Bronze.
Tokyo 2020 Olympics – Japan
Originally scheduled for July 2020, the Games were pushed back by a year due to Covid-19.
Many countries had expressed fears before the postponement while some withdrew from the event.
The Games will now run from July 23 to August 8 with over 10,000 athletes expected to compete.
Kenyan is aiming at fielding at least 100 athletes at the Games and gunning for at least 17 medals. Team Kenya will have a two-week camp in Kurume City in Japan ahead of the Games.
Fiba Afrobasket Championship – Rwanda
Fiba Afrobasket championship 2021 will be the 30th edition of the men’s basketball continental championship of Africa.
Originally scheduled to take place between August 17-29 in Rwanda, the timeline was extended, moving the jump off back a week and the conclusion by a week too due to the Covid-19 pandemic to between August 24 and September 5.
Kenya’s national team, Morans are one win away from making a return to the continental showpiece after close to three decades of missing out.
The side will take on Senegal, Angola and Mozambique in a return leg scheduled for next month.
Safari Rally – Nairobi/Naivasha
An 18 -year wait for the Safari Rally to return to the World Rally Championship (WRC) will come to an end on the weekend of June 24 to 27 when the event is scheduled run.
Kenya held a candidature event in 2019 with the Safari scheduled to make a return to the WRC in 2020 but that had to wait due to the Covid-19 outbreak.
The profile of this event will convene in excess of 825 million visitors in the form of spectators, online games participants and global television viewership.
IHF World Men’s Handball Championship – Egypt
International Handball Federation will hold the men’s event, its 27th edition, in Egypt from January 14 to 31.
This will be the first handball championship with 32 teams instead of 24. It is also the third championship to be hosted in Africa, the second in Egypt and the first to be hosted outside of Europe since 2015.
Denmark are the defending champions after winning the biennial event for the first time in 2019 on home soil.
Magical Kenya Open Golf- Nairobi
Now a main European Tour event, Kenya Open will run from March 18 to 21 at the Karen Country Club, just days after the Commercial Bank Qatar Masters in Doha.
The Open made its debut in the main European Tour in 2019 after 50 years of running as a Challenge Tour event.
The government took over as the title sponsor for Sh252.9 million which increased the prize money to Sh126million, which was double the amount from the 2018 event.
Safari Tour, the Open qualifying tournament began in October with five legs already played.
The Professional Golfers of Kenya (PGK) has petitioned to the organisers to have the local slots increased from the current eight.
CHAN – Cameroon
The African Nations Championship (CHAN) will run from January 16 to February 7 in Cameroon.
Harambee Stars were knocked out of the qualifiers by Tanzania’s Taifa Stars, who are now in group D alongside Zambia, Namibia and Guinea, after losing 4-1 on post-match penalties following a barren draw in regular time.