The first ever National Olympic Committee of Kenya (NOC-K) gender conference kicked off in Nairobi on Tuesday with speakers challenging women to take up leadership roles in sports.
NOC-K president Paul Tergat condemned Gender Based Violence (GBV) cases that have tarnished the image of sports especially athletics in the recent years.
Tergat who has been in the forefront in championing for a 50-50 representation in sports stressed the need of breaking the barriers so that women can enjoy participating in sports events locally and internationally.
Tergat said, “Sports is where we leverage from other activities and even conflicts. We must ensure that there is equal pay for both male and female athletes, have female athletes access training facilities easily.”
During the Paris Olympics, the Kenyan ladies led by example, winning seven medals which the men winning four medals, it is for this reason that Tergat, who is the outgoing NOC-K president insisted on change in the gender issue.
“Huge medals in Paris came from the ladies and now you have seen it is possible for ladies to take over the mantle,” the former World marathon record holder said.
He continues,” Federations have to encourage ladies to take up leadership roles within the federations to bridge the gap,”
The day’s main speaker, former Kenyatta University Vice Chancellor Professor Olive Mugenda called for “the disruption of the narrative” in regards to sports representation.
Mugenda called for equal compensation for all gender, something she said will go a long way to having healthy competition in sports.
She said, “We should not only focus on the physical aspect of the sports, ladies undergo a lot of issues which affect their performance both on and off the competitions.”
“We must ensure that they (ladies) have good mental health and that focus that will enable them participate to their full potential.”
National amateur boxing team captain Elizabeth Andiego hailed NOC-K’s effort of ensuring inclusively saying that this will go ahead to having more women take up the sport.
“Being the first woman to captain a national team in both men and women teams on international assignments means that we have come of age as a country and can only get better,” Andiego said.
