NAIROBI, Kenya, April 3 – Kenya has been tipped to be a beach handball powerhouse in the near future thanks to regular competitions in and outside the country.
Kenya Handball Federation’s (KHF) technical director in the Coast region, Titus Kesekwa, cited the case of the women’s team who collected silver at last year’s Africa Beach Games in Hammamet, Tunisia.
“You see, for example, due to the first edition of the national beach games that were organised by NOCK (National Olympics Committee of Kenya), we went to Tunisia and won silver. You have to put into perspective that Tunisia is a team with a lot of experience and have played at the top level for years. With more of such competitions, I can guarantee you that next edition (of the Africa Beach Games) we are winning gold,” Kesekwa said.
The women’s team lost 2-1 to the Tunisians in extra time, having excelled against other competitors, such as Uganda, Mali and Algeria.
Furthermore, the team placed second at the 2023 International Handball Federation (IHF) Beach Handball Global Tour at the same venue.
It was a massive improvement for the sand queens who had finished fourth at the previous edition of the continental beach extravaganza in 2019 in Sal, Cape Verde.
With chances of the International Olympics Committee (IOC) including beach handball at the 2028 Games in Los Angeles, Kesekwa said they are thinking ahead by putting in necessary structures to ensure Kenya are among the strongest competitors at that Olympics.
“We have started early preparations ahead of that. That’s why we have national leagues in place, including from Under 13, Under 18 and at the senior level. With such plans in place, we are confident that Kenya will make it to the Olympics. Just like athletics, we are not waiting for that day to come to start preparing rather the wheels are already moving,” he explained.
Kesekwa added: “We already have beach handball at the 2026 Youth Olympics in Dakar. At this year’s Olympics in Paris, there will be an exhibition of beach handball to explore the possibility of including it at Los Angeles. In most cases that IOC includes a discipline as a demonstration sport, chances are usually high that they will eventually admit it as an Olympics sport.”
Awareness campaign
Part of the multi-pronged strategy to grow beach handball is an awareness campaign that seeks to gain the buy-in of all relevant stakeholders around the country.
Kesekwa said they are debunking the notion that beach handball is only feasible in coastal and lake regions that are blessed with sandy shores.
“We are moving around the country to create awareness about beach handball. I thank God there are counties that have bought into the idea of the sport and have included them in their youth games. Also, we are trying to debunk the notion that beach handball can only be played in areas that have beaches,” he said.
Kesekwa added: “Beach handball can be played anywhere so long as this sand can be ferried from one place to another. Constructing a pitch is also not time consuming because it only measures 27 by 12 metres…a day’s work and the pitch is ready for use. We have started with Makueni and now there is a beach handball pitch there.”
Equally pivotal to their awareness campaign is an active social media presence through which Kesekwa says they have been able to link up with potential partners outside Kenya.
“There is power in social media…we have noticed that there are friends from outside the country. They are donating some bibs while some are giving us balls because they can see what we are doing and they like it. Through social media, we can create curiosity around the game. Right now, here in Malindi, we have so many fans who came out because they saw that there are matches going on here and so they came to see,” he said.
Even as they cast their eyes wide to Los Angeles 2028 and beyond, Kesekwa is hopeful NOCK will continue organising more beach games around the country.
He noted that the second edition of the event – staged the past weekend at Buntwani Water Park in Malindi – was bigger and better, particularly with regards to beach handball.
“Last year, we had only six teams competing in beach handball and they were all from the Coast region. This year, we had 10 teams including some from Nairobi. That means we are expanding and I believe that if NOCK continue in the same spirit then we will go far even at the international level,” Kesekwa said.
This year’s edition of the games were clinched by Kilifians and Coast Twins in the men and women’s category respectively.
