KSSSA introduce six new disciplines to the Term Two schools calendar

Baseball Kenya President Titus Mutwiri during a training for teachers and coaches at Kisii Culture Hall/ANGWENYI GICHANA

Cricket, lacrosse and baseball are among the six new disciplines officially introduced into the national Kenya Secondary Schools Sports Association (KSSSA) Term Two calendar.

Others added to the programme are beach volleyball, chess and scrabble, according to a circular signed by Simon Mururi on behalf of the Ministry of Education Principal Secretary.

The circular was addressed to the presidents of Chess Kenya, Cricket Kenya, Lacrosse Kenya, Baseball Federation of Kenya, Beach Volleyball and Scrabble Kenya.

The disciplines featured as demonstration sports during last year’s national and East Africa championships in Kakamega before earning full inclusion in the school games calendar.

According to the circular, the respective federations will organise their own preliminary competitions to determine teams that will qualify for the national championships.

“Referees/umpires for these games will be teachers selected in consultation with the federations,” read part of the circular. Lacrosse, cricket and baseball will each feature six boys’ and six girls’ teams at the national championships. Beach volleyball will have 16 teams at the nationals, with every region fielding one boys’ and one girls’ team.

Meanwhile, chess and scrabble will each attract 12 boys’ and 12 girls’ teams drawn from across the country. Mururi directed the federations to strictly adhere to the agreed number of players and officials during the competitions.

“The federations will be responsible for the logistics of taking the teams to the nationals in terms of transportation, meals en route, team managers’ and chaperones’ upkeep,” Mururi stated in the circular.

However, the government and KSSSA will facilitate teams that qualify for the Federation of East Africa Schools’ Sports Association (FEASSA) Games scheduled for August in Morogoro, Tanzania.

Federations were also tasked with sourcing standard playing fields and equipment for the national championships, with the venues expected to be located close to the main competition grounds.

This year’s KSSSA Term Two national championships will be held at Mpesa Academy and Thika Stadium in Kiambu County from July 26 to August 1. Lacrosse Kenya president Titus Mutwiri welcomed the move, describing it as a major milestone for the growth of the sport in the country.

“We need to have established grounds across the counties and regions. We have embarked on training teachers and coaches in various regions,” said Mutwiri. He added: “I will be writing to all heads of schools informing them of this development and seeking their support to access the schools for training.”