KHU games to resume next year, says president Randiek

The Kenya Hockey Union (KHU) will resume somewhere between February and early March next year, the federation’s president Nahashon Randiek has said.

KHU league action has been on a shutdown for nearly two years, with no top-flight games being played in the country since the Government first suspend all sport in March 2020 due to COVID-19 concerns.

While that suspension has long been lifted, hockey is one of few disciplines yet to resume play with the KHU hit by cash crunch and its dilapidated facilities hardly able to support the sport.

Randiek said there will be a meeting with clubs to decide a clear return date.

“We couldn’t start it in November since it’s usually our off season. We will give the clubs up to January 2022 to prepare and the plan is to resume towards the end of February,” Randiek said.

KHU had signaled its leagues would return in April before the Government announced a fresh suspension of all sporting activities due to a surge in COVID-19 infections.

Under that plan in April, fixtures would be behind closed doors with the City Park in Parklands hosting up to four league matches per week.

Randiek pointed out the lack of competitive action had weakened Kenyan clubs, with Wazalendo who represented Kenya at the just concluded Africa Cup for Club Championship particularly highlighting his sentiment.

Wazalendo fell at the first hurdle at the continental competition after losing all its group matches.

They were Kenya's only representative in the tournament held in Accra, Ghana after league champions Butali Sugar Warriors, runners-up Kenya Police, women's league champions Blazers and USIU-A failed to travel due to lack of adequate funds.

The women and men national teams are currently training for the CAF Africa Cup of Nations that will take place in the Ghanaian capital from January 9 to February 6, 2022.