This archive report was first published on 21 December 2019.
On Saturday, December 21, 2019, Kenya's men's beach volleyball team secured a spot in the next phase of the Olympic qualifiers after defeating hosts Uganda 2-0 in their final match of the zonal qualifiers at the Lido Beach in Entebbe, Uganda.
Kenya had faced a tough challenge earlier in the competition, succumbing to a much-improved Tanzania team 15-12 in the golden set after both nations tied 1-1 games on Friday.
However, the Kenyan team bounced back, with the pair of Brian Melly and Cornelius Kiplagat winning against the Ugandan pair of Amon Ainebyona and Emmanuel Elanyu 2-0 (21-19, 21-13), and the experienced pair of Ibrahim Oduor and James Mwaniki emerging victorious against the pair of Mark Okurut and Emmanuel Kato 2-0 (21-12, 21-10).
Team coach Sammy Mulinge expressed satisfaction with the team's achievement, stating that their primary goal was to qualify for the second phase, and they would work on improving their sport movements, cover, communication, and mental strength ahead of the next round.
"We are happy we have achieved our goal. However, our teams need more training to catch up with the techniques," Mulinge said. "We had little time to train prior to the zonal qualifiers but ahead of the next phase, we have adequate time to work on our main undoing weaknesses," he added.
Coach Mulinge also thanked the federation for giving the team the opportunity to participate in the event, highlighting the importance of an elite youth program in securing the future of beach volleyball in Kenya.
