By Roy Hezron
The National Secondary and Primary Schools Athletics Championship will start on July 2 and 3 this year 2022, a recent Circular from the Ministry of Education has shown.
In a Circular dated June 22, 2022 signed by A.G. Rukaria on behalf of Principal Secretary in the State Department of Early Learning and Basic Education Dr. Julius Jwan all Regional, County and Sub-County Directors of Education have been asked to start preparations for the championship.
“The purpose of this letter is to advise all the Sub-County, County and Regional Directors of Education to start planning, organizing and coordinating the championships at their specific levels,” read the Circular in part.
According to the Circular the National Championships for Primary School Athletics will start on July 2, 2022 and end July 4,2022 while Secondary School Athletics will start on July 3, 2022 and end July 7, 2022; which both be hosted at Kigari Teachers Training College.
The Special Needs Secondary School National Championships will kick off on July 2, 2022 and end July 4, 2022 at Machakos Teachers Training College; while the Regional Championships are supposed to end by June 30, 2022.
The Ministry has instructed the Regions to take care of all the team officials including the team managers, Coaches, drivers among others during the National Championships, while the Ministry headquarters will finance the championship administration cost.
Among the key conditions the participants during the Championships are supposed to follow include incorporation of a medical officer from the Ministry of Health to advice on safety and health standards, with the number of participants at various level being limited to only 20 boys and 20 girls; while the number of competition days and number of officials being at lowest level possible to cut on the costs.
The Championships will prepare the qualifying athletes to participate in the World under 20 trials.
The school co-curricular activities were suspended in schools on March 15, 2020 when all learning institutions were closed to prevent the spread of Covid-19 pandemic in learning institutions.
However, after consultations with stakeholders, the Ministry of Education decided that co-curricular activities resume gradually though starting with primary and secondary schools athletics at all levels in term one of 2022 school calendar.
