Decathlon, heptathlon re-introduced in KSSSA calendar

Kenya Secondary Schools Sports Association Secretary General David Ngugi/ANGWENYI GICHANA

Decathlon and heptathlon have been reintroduced in the Kenya Secondary Schools Sports Association (KSSSA) calendar.

KSSSA Secretary General David Ngugi said the two events, which have not been held since 2019, will be staged in Term One alongside cross country and track and field.

Heptathlon is a combination of seven track and field events for girls, while decathlon comprises 10 events for boys.

In decathlon, the athletes compete in 100m, long jump, shot put, high jump, 400m, 110m hurdles, javelin throw, pole vault, discus and 1, 500m.

Heptathlon features 100m hurdles, high jump, shot put, 200m, long jump, javelin throw and 800m.

Participants earn points for their performance in each event, and the winner is the athlete who has scored the most points overall, factoring in heights, times, and distances achieved.

Ngugi said the KSSSA portal will be reopened for registration for decathlon and heptathlon participants who were not registered last year.

Only Form Three and Form Four students will be eligible.

Further, Ngugi said that they are consulting about the introduction of beach volleyball, cricket and lacrosse in their calendar. The games were held as demonstration sports during the national and Federation of East Africa Schools Sports Association (FEASSA) games.

“We are in discussions with the Ministry of Education and other stakeholders on the inclusion of these games in our calendar. For the games to be introduced in our calendar, they should meet a certain criterion. We shall give the way forward soon,” Ngugi remarked.

Ngugi announced that chess and scrabble will be held in Term Two. Chess made its debut in the FEASSA calendar in Kakamega last year.

At the same time, more than 50 schools have confirmed their participation in the third edition of the Kisii School Open Tournament. The tournament will feature Senior Schools, Junior Schools and institutions of higher learning, said coordinator Dennis Omwansa.

Some of the top schools expected are hosts Kisii School, Cardinal Otunga High School, Mosocho, Nyanchwa Boys, Kibabii Boys, Agoro Sare, Homa Bay High, Ojijo Oteko, Kisii University, Rongo University, Kisii National Polytechnic, Borabu TTC, Nyabururu TTC, Kereri Girls and Asumbi TTC.

“We expect more than 50 institutions to take part. More teams have indicated that they will confirm their participation by Friday,” noted Omwansa.