The 2021/22 Kenya Volleyball Federation (KVF) National Beach Volleyball Circuit came to a close last weekend in the coastal city of Mombasa which was the last leg of the four-stop competition that started in Homa Bay County in October 2021.
Makueni County hosted the second stop in December 2021, before players converged on Mombasa for the third stop in February 2022. The Circuit then took a break to allow the national women’s team to compete at the FIVB World Championships 2022 in Rome, Italy and Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, England.
Last weekend, the final stop, initially scheduled for mid-2022 and rescheduled due to the above-mentioned break, was held in Mombasa with the pair of Phosca Kasisi and Yvonne Wavinya winning the women’s tournament while Jairus Bett and Elphas Makuto triumphed in the men’s event. Interestingly, Wavinya was part of the Kenya national indoor women’s volleyball team that trained in Brazil for 10 weeks last year, as part of the FIVB Volleyball Empowerment programme.
Both pairs stunned pre-tournament women’s and men’s favourites Naomi Too/Gaudencia Makokha and Cornelius Kiplagat/Nicholas Lagat, respectively, to emerge champions.
Naftali Chumba in action during the fourth stop of KVF National Beach volleyball circuit held in Mombasa last weekend. PHOTO | KVF MEDIA
A record 36 entries (23 men, 13 women) were registered for the last stop in Mombasa as players battled for FIVB ranking points in the Homologated Circuit.
Speaking to FIVB.com, KVF President Waithaka Kioni noted beach volleyball is on the raise in Kenya and encouraged the government to provide more support to the men’s and women’s national teams.
“The huge entry in the last stop is an indication of the growth of beach volleyball in the country because the KVF Beach Volleyball Commission has been doing a good job.
“As beach volleyball grows, it’s imperative that our national teams are able to participate in regional and international tours since these events are used as qualifiers for major competitions. This will enable our players to earn ranking points and Kenya will not miss out on big events,” said Kioni.
Kenya was first represented in beach volleyball at the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 by the pair of Prackcides Agala and Gaudencia Makokha. The duo later qualified for the FIVB World Championships 2022, Kenya’s second appearance at the global competition. Makokha and Too first represented Kenya at the World Championships held in 2017 in Vienna, Austria.
KVF National Beach Volleyball Circuit overview:
Stop 1 – Homa Bay-October 2021 – 12 men’s and 4 women’s entries.
Men’s winning team – Naftali Chumba/Brian Melly), women’s winning team – Gladys Munge/Phosca Kasisi.
Stop 2 – Makueni-December 2021 – 12 men’s and 7 women’s teams.
Men’s winning team – David Neeke/Juliard Mbappe, women’s winning team -Naomi Too/Veronica Adhiambo.
Stop 3 – Mombasa, February 2022 – 21 men’s and 12 women’s teams.
Men’s winning team – Ibrahim Oduor/James Mwaniki and women’s winning team – Gaudencia Makokha/Prackcides Agala.
Stop 4 – Mombasa, February 2023 – 23 men’s and 13 women’s teams.
Men’s winning team – Jairus Bett/Elphas Makuto and women’s winning team – Phosca Kasisi /Yvonne Wavinya.
