Kenya's young stars light up African Youth Games

Wesley Kiplagat led the charge with a silver medal in 3,000m after an impressive run, clocking 8mins 03.14 seconds to finish second behind Eritrea’s Alexander Rueson, who claimed the top honours in 8mins 02.06 secs.

Ethiopia’s Goytom Mekonen Kidane rounded up the podium in 8mins 26.52seconds.

“I’m very happy to have won a medal in my first time to represent the country in a continental championship,” said Kiplagat.

Kenya also celebrated podium finishes with Kevin Kipkosge securing bronze medal in the 800 metres in 1min 56.73secs behind champion Hika Regassa of Ethiopia who clocked 1min 53.30secs, and second placed Riad Yasser of Algeria.

In the girls’ 1,500 metres final, Millicent Kipyekomen added another bronze for Kenya with a strong third-place finish.

Kipyekomen, who draws inspiration from triple Olympic 1500m champion and compatriot Faith Kipyegon, timed 4mins 36.48secs to complete the podium behind Hana Negesa Bikila of Ethiopia and Uganda’s Baskaline Cherotwo respectively.

With these results, Kenya’s medal count now stands at ten, four gold, two silver and four bronze medals.

The country’s bumper harvest at the Games is expected to continue on Sunday afternoon with several athletes still in contention for more medals.

Kenya’s beach volleyball teams made light work of their opponents on Saturday to punch tickets to the semis as they eye a clean sweep in their debut competion.

The Patrick Owino-coached women side dispatched Angola 2-0 sets while their men counterpart defeated Namibia with a similar score line.

“It was a tough contest and we prevailed amid a strong backing for Angola by their home fans. We won it tactically and now the real task starts at the semis but my players are ready for the battle,” Owino said.

The African Youth Games which are tailor-made for athletes aged between 14-17 from across the continent competing across 33 sports, was officially opened on Saturday night by the President of the Association of National Olympic Committees of Africa (ANOCA) Mustapha Berraf.

The ceremony held at Estádio Nacional 11 de Novembro in Luanda welcomed Africa’s next generation of champions, uniting nations in a festival of talent, culture, and raw sporting passion.

But even before the fireworks, Kenya's young stars are already lighting up the city with electrifying performances and golden moments.

“Being our first time to compete in the Games, we hope to stamp our authority like we’ve done in the Olympics and other championships. We saw it very important to field teams at this year’s edition so as to start early preparation for next year’s Youth Olympics in Dakar.

“The strong performance is already giving us a sneak peak of what will happen in Dakar next year,” said Team Kenya’s General Manager James Akama.

Immediate National Olympic Committee of Kenya (NOC-K) president Paul Tergat and former world marathon record holder Tegla Loroupe were among key delegates from Kenya who graced the opening ceremony.