This archive report was first published on 5 January 2020.
January 4, 2020, marked a significant day for 13-year-old Sharon Jepkosgei from Soini Primary School in Nandi County. She was training with the national beach volleyball team at the Flamingo By PrideInn Beach in Mombasa, ahead of the Beach Volleyball Africa Qualifying Sub-Zonal 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games Qualifier in Tanzania.
Sharon, who was just 13 at the time, expressed her gratitude and determination to make the most of the opportunity. 'I need to work extremely hard as I have a bright future and that I deserve to be in the national team,' she said.
Sharon's coach, Sammy Mulinge, had spotted her untapped talent during a volleyball tournament in Kapsabet last year. He worked closely with her teacher and coach, Joseph Dirch, to expose her to the game. 'I would like to thank teacher Dirch for allowing the girl to travel to Mombasa for residential training and I can confidently say that she has adopted well to beach volleyball technical demands,' said Mulinge.
The team will compete against hosts Tanzania, Uganda, and Rwanda in the Africa Zone Five sub zonal 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games qualifiers from January 10-12 at Balamwezi beach in Dar es salaam, Tanzania.
