Kioni seeks greater KVF-govt ties in final act

Waithaka Kioni has said he will seek greater engagement with the Government in his final term as Kenya Volleyball Federation (KVF) president following his reelection on Saturday.

Kioni who trounced his only opponent, the Dominion Club founder Martin Ochieng 68-26 to retain his post asserted government support will further help spur the development of the sport.

“We had already started engaging government and we will still continue doing it because for sure our biggest problem facing the game is lack of funds,” Kioni said.

The KVF chief warned Kenya has a long way to go in terms of investment in indoor facilities before they can bridge the gap between them and their North African counterparts who have dominated the continent over past decade.

“Volleyball is an indoor sport and our opponents have invested heavily on that area. For instance Al Ahly (Egypt) who hosted this year’s African Club championships have four arenas as a club but here in Kenya we only have one in Kasarani. As a result we just train for a month or two prior to the championship and spend the rest of the time doing outdoor training.

“These are the issues I want to try my best to ensure as a federation and support from government we deliver before my tenure elapses,” vowed Kioni who doubles up as the second vice president of the National Olympics Committee Kenya (Nock).

The long-serving KVF boss long serving head noted that North African teams have also focused on youth development thus their dominance in the game.

“Egyptian clubs have academies and their youth players are trained and exposed to international competitions at the age of 14. You cannot do that unless you have proper funding from the government and the potential is there in this country. The importance of youth development cannot be given a short shrift,” he averred.