800m winner David Kapaiko/ANOCAKenya underlined its dominance at the 2026 Association of National Olympic Committees of Africa (ANOCA) Zone V Youth Games, sweeping the beach volleyball titles while producing a strong medal haul in athletics, swimming and tennis as the four-day competition concluded in Nairobi on Thursday.
The hosts completed a golden double on the sand at Kenyatta University, with Kenya Two pairs winning both the girls’ and boys’ titles.
Eddah Jepkemei and Ann Akiro recovered from a first-set loss to beat compatriots Esther Chesoli and Josephine Achieng 2-1 (18-21, 21-14, 15-12) in the girls’ final.
In the boys’ final, Emmanuel Kipkirui and Reagan Kipchirchir defeated Uganda’s Emmanuel James Oyena and Reagan Kimbowa 2-0 (21-14, 21-19).
Jepkemei attributed their comeback to improved communication and fighting spirit.
“We lost the first set because of a lack of communication and lost a bit of hope, but we managed to improve on that, and you saw the difference in the next two sets, as we played as a team and fought for each other,” she said.
In athletics, Kenya added four gold medals on the second day, with Enock Tuitoek winning the boys’ 3,000m in 8:01.67, Purity Munyalo taking the girls’ triple jump at 12.66m, David Kapaiko claiming the boys’ 800m in 1:52.55 and Anthony Lemoshira winning the boys’ 100m in 10.73 seconds.
Peter Mwaura and Millicent Jepkonga added silver medals in the boys’ 400m and girls’ 1,500m respectively.
Kenya’s swimmers also dominated, topping the standings after two days with 12 gold, 10 silver and one bronze medal.
Macrine Kalombo, Yannick Rieck and Lisa Kamphuis were among the leading performers, while the hosts also won both mixed relay titles.
Swimming competitions co-director Collins Marigiri said the performances provided important exposure for the young athletes.
“The performances are providing valuable competition for the young athletes as they seek to strengthen their credentials for future international competitions and the Dakar Youth Olympic Games,” he said.
In tennis, Seline Ahoya completed an unbeaten run to win the girls’ gold after defeating Uganda’s Lilian Ayee 6-3, 6-2. Nancy Kawira took silver, while Mark Murage claimed boys’ silver and Edward Mwakio bronze.
In basketball, Kenya won the girls’ title, while South Sudan claimed the boys’ crown on the final day.
Kenya Two topped the girls’ standings with 300 points, followed by Uganda on 200 and South Sudan on 100.
Kenya Two’s Chelsea Onamwo was voted the girls’ Most Valuable Player.
In the boys’ competition, South Sudan topped the standings with 160 points, ahead of Kenya One on 140 and Kenya Two on 60. South Sudan’s Agot Deng was named the boys’ MVP.
Anoca Zone V president Donald Rukare said the Games were designed to prepare young athletes for bigger international competitions.
“We wanted to give our youths a platform to compete and also prepare well for the Youth Olympics in Dakar as a zone,” said Rukare.
He added that the zone plans to expand the Games by working with local organising committees and introducing more disciplines.
The Games attracted more than 300 athletes from 11 countries competing in seven sports. They also marked the return of the Zone V Youth Games to East Africa after a seven-year hiatus.
The next edition is expected in 2028.
