This archive report was first published on 25 July 2019.
COPA COCA-COLA UNDER-16 TEAMS TO BATTLE IT OUT FOR NATIONAL GLORY ¶
Published on July 25, 2019
The 2019 Under-16 COPA Coca-Cola Nationals will take place next week at the Kisumu National Polytechnic, Kisumu County, with the winning teams representing Kenya in the second edition of the COPA Coca-Cola Africa Cup to be held later in the year.
Thirty-two games will be played at the Polytechnic from July 30th to August 3rd, 2019. The tournament is a culmination of the Under-16 boys' and girls' tournament, which saw a total of 5,400 schools register and participate for a chance to be inaugurated as the national champions and a direct ticket to the COPA Coca-Cola Africa Cup.
Defending champions St. Anthony High School (boys) and Moi Girls Nangili (Girls) are notably missing from the nationals this year, having been knocked out during the preliminary matches of their regional games held last month in Rift Valley and Western Region respectively.
Wiyeta Girls High School (Rift Valley Region), the 2016 girls' champions, will be seeking to stamp their dominance in the girl's category after being defeated in the finals last year against the eventual champions Moi Girls Nangili.
The tournament is under the Ministry of Education, in partnership between Kenya Secondary Schools Sports Association (KSSSA) and The Coca-Cola Company. The Coca-Cola System in Kenya has also embarked on an environmental behavior change campaign, where one school in every region will have its pitch revamped, with the winner determined by the school that achieves the highest number of kilos.
