Kenyan president hails sports teams for great performances

Source: Xinhua| 2019-09-01 06:48:23|Editor: Wu Qin
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NAIROBI, Aug. 31 (Xinhua) -- Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta on Saturday congratulated Kenyan teams in various international sport events for outstanding performances.

Kenyatta said he has been closely following exploits by the country's sports men and women, adding, "I am particularly impressed by the performances by our teams at the 12th African Games in Rabat, Morocco."

The east African nation is ranked seventh at the African Games with 11 gold, 10 silver and 10 bronze medals.

Egypt, Nigeria and South Africa occupy the top three positions with 270, 126 and 87 medals respectively.

According to Kenyatta, the hard-fought win on Friday evening by Malkia Strikers, the country's women volleyball team, was typical of the resilience and the fighting spirit of the Kenyan people.

"We all saw how our volleyball queens put up a spirited fight to win gold last (Friday) night. They fought hard against a tough Cameroonian team to retain their title as African Champions," he said.

Kenyatta also lauded team captain in Rabat, Julius Yego who not only retained his African Championship by winning gold but also ensured fellow Kenyan Alexander Kiprotich came second.

He also congratulated the Kenyan team which finished second at the World Martial Arts Mastership Tong Il Moo Do in South Korea for a splendid performance.

Other notable Kenyan performances at the continental games which end today include a silver medal win by boxer Shaffi Bakari in the 52kg flyweight, the half marathon gold win by Titus Ekiru and a podium sweep by Kenya in men's 5,000m as well as the gold win by George Manangoi in 1,500m.

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