Tag: Soya Awards

All eyes will be on Michael Olunga as the Kenyan sporting family awaits to see whether football will finally end athletics dominance at the annual Safaricom Sports Personality of the Year Awards (Soya) gala that is set to go down Friday evening at the Mombasa Sports Club.

No sportsman or woman from outside athletics has won the overall Soya title, the highest category of recognition since the introduction of the class in 2011 and only two athletes from outside athletics — swimmer Jason Dunford (2007) and sevens superstar Collin Injera (2009) have won the Sportsman of the Year Award.

The overall award is picked from the Sportsman and Woman of the year categories.

It is also noteworthy to point that two Paralympians have won the Sportsman of the Year category twice since the inception of the awards, a brainchild of former World marathon record holder, Paul Terga.

Visually impaired athlete Henry Wanyoike won the inaugural edition in 2004 with the Deaflympian Samuel Mushai clinching the title the 2008. But before then the Overall title had not been introduced yet until three years later.

The question on the lips of many is whether football will join the rare ‘elite club’ of winners and finally end athletics dominance at the event themed “A Night Under the Stars, with the Stars”, to be held at the coastal city for the second year in a row.

No footballer has ever won the Sportsman of the Year Award but the focus will be on Harambee Stars striker Olunga, who faces a horde of athletics heavyweights including World 1,500m champion Timothy Cheruiyot, Olympics and World Champion Conseslus Kipruto, World Half Marathon record holder Geoffrey Kamworor and World Marathon record holder Eliud Kipchoge.

Olunga became the first Kenyan to score a brace at the Africa Cup of Nations as he spurred Kenya to a 3-2 victory against Tanzania in the group stage in Egypt  in June last year.

At club level, Olunga who plays for Kashiwa Reysol in Japan helped the side gain promotion to the Japanese Premier League.

But he faces among others Kipchoge who started the year with victory in London Marathon in a course record time 2:02:37. Then in October where he became the first human to run the marathon in under two hours when he clocked 1:59:40 in Ineos 1:59 Challenge in Vienna, Austria.

Another contender for the highest sporting award in Kenya is Kipruto who battled to retain his world 3,000m Steeplechase title and Kamworor who shaved 17 seconds off the World Half Marathon record at the Copenhagen Half Marathon, winning the race in 58:01 in September.

Kamworor had in March won bronze at the World Cross Country Championships besides claiming his second New York City Marathon in November.

Meanwhile, Vincent Mutai who won an unprecedented three gold medals at the International Para Athletics Championships last year, and the 2018 Sports Personality of the Year Samuel Mushai are among the nominees for the Sportsman Living with a Disability Award.

An equal battle is expected in the women category where only long-distance runner Vivian Cheruiyot has managed to win the overall title twice in 2011 and 2016.

Musclewoman Evelyne Okinyi Owala is eyeing to upset formbooks as she flexes against three world champions and a World Marathon record holder from athletics for Sports Woman of the Year.

Owala has her fingers crossed after making the final five alongside World champions Hellen Obiri (5,000m), Ruth Chepng’etich (marathon) and Beatrice Chepkoech (3,000m steeplechase).

There is also the World Marathon record holder Brigid Kosgei, who is also the London and Chicago Marathon champion.

Owala entered her name in the annals of history when she won the 2019 African title in the Wellness Division held in Angola. She also clinched the Arnold Classic during the International Federation of Bodybuilding and Fitness (IFBB) Championships in South Africa.

Owala finished third in the 2019 IFBB World Cup after finishing 10th at the Arnold Classic event in Europe. She qualified for elite pro league where she will compete this year, making history as the first Kenyan female.

Chepng’etich opened Kenya’s medal account at the 2019 World Championships in Doha with victory in women’s marathon besides posting 2:17:08 to win Dubai Marathon by the third fastest time in history by then.

Brigid, 25, won the London Marathon to set the stage for her exploits at Chicago Marathon where she broke the women’s world record that stood for 16 years, clocking 2:14:04 to erase Paula Radcliffe’s record by 1 minute 24 seconds.

Obiri won the World Cross Country title in Aarhus, Denmark before retaining her World 5000m title in Doha, setting a new Championship Record time of 14:26.72. She had finished fourth in 10,000m race.

Chepkoech won her first ever world title in 3,000m steeplechase in Doha and also retained her Diamond League trophy title.

Multi-talented Asiya Sururu who is set for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics in rowing, and World Para Athletics bronze medallist Nancy Chelagat highlight the Sportswoman Living with a Disability category.

Former Nigerian Afcon winner and ex- Africa Player of the Year Victor Ikpeba will be the chief guest.