Kenya's Dream Of Hosting World Athletics Championships Comes To An End

15th July 2022

President Uhuru Kenyatta was on the forefront on championing Kenya’s bid to host the event, which would have meant Africa hosting the 10-day Championship for the first time ever

Wycliffe Kinyamal (C) wins the men's 1500m final by the second fastest time of this year, in the second fastest time in the world, 1:43.54, during the national trials for the World Championships and the Commonwealth Games at the Kasarani stadium in Nairobi, Kenya, on January 25, 2022. PHOTO | AFP
Wycliffe Kinyamal (C) wins the men's 1500m final by the second fastest time of this year, in the second fastest time in the world, 1:43.54, during the national trials for the World Championships and the Commonwealth Games at the Kasarani stadium in Nairobi, Kenya, on January 25, 2022. PHOTO | AFP
SUMMARY
  • Kenya’s dream of hosting the senior World Athletics Championships were ended after World Athletics announced that Tokyo will host the 2025 edition
  • Kenya had placed a bid to host the 2025 showpiece for the first time ever, but World Athletics boss Sebastian Coe in a statement announced Tokyo have been handed the hosting rights

Kenya’s dream of hosting the senior World Athletics Championships were ended after World Athletics announced that Tokyo will host the 2025 edition.

Kenya had placed a bid to host the 2025 showpiece for the first time ever, but World Athletics boss Sebastian Coe in a statement announced Tokyo have been handed the hosting rights.

The Polish city of Silesia and Singapore had also placed bids to host the 2025 editions, but, the Japanese Capital which hosted last year’s Olympic Games have won the bid .

"Within an extremely strong field of candidates to host the World Athletics Championships 2025, Tokyo offered a compelling bid. I hope this will be a shining light for Japan as they celebrate 100 years of the Japanese Association of Athletics Federations (JAAF) in 2025, by bringing world-class athletics back to the people in Tokyo," Coe said in a statement.

Kenya had remained confident of hosting the showpiece after the successful hosting of the World Under-18 Championships in 2017, the World Under-20 last year as well as three editions of the Kip Keino Classic, a leg of the World Athletics Continental Gold Tour.

President Uhuru Kenyatta was on the forefront on championing Kenya’s bid to host the event, which would have meant Africa hosting the 10-day Championship for the first time ever.

"Because of the infrastructure we have developed, we are very hopeful we are well prepared that in 2025 our country will have the pride and pleasure of hosting the first World Athletics Championships to be held on the African continent," the Head of State had said earlier in May.