Kenya will host Nations Cup attracting over 10 countries

Updated Monday, July 15th 2013 at 23:20 GMT +3 By ELIZABETH MBURUGU
Officials from African Hockey Federation (AFHF) will tour the country next week to appraise Nairobi City Park Stadium suitablity as venue for this year’s continental championships.

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Seif Ahmed, AFHF President, will lead the delegation to Kenya on July 26 to ascertain the condition of the stadium before sanctioning Kenya to stage the Africa Nations Cup. This is to ensure that the stadium meets international standards and is fit to host an event of such magnitude.
Kenya Hockey Union (KHU) Chairman Resham Bains said the union needed Sh40 million to prepare and comfortably host the continental tournament, which runs from September 26 to October 6.
The winners of the event, both men and women categories, will qualify for the World Cup in hockey, which will be played in The Hague, Netherlands in June 2014.
Bains said that they had already presented their budget to the National Olympic committee of Kenya and the Sports Ministry to help in funding the hosting of the tournament.
Some repairs will be done on the artificial turf on the Nairobi City Park stadium with Edel grass expected in the country in the course of the week.
Inspection tour
“We are preparing for the inspection. Our aim is to be ready before the AFHF officials get here. It is an honour to host this event and we are determined to make it a success,” the vice chair of the Kenya Hockey Union Nashon Randiek told Fever Pitch.
“We call on the government and corporate sponsors to come on board and support us so we can have a successfully event.”
The honour of hosting the Africa Cup of Nations was earlier awarded to Egypt but the political tension in the Lands of Pharaoh has forced the Egyptian Hockey Federation to withdraw as the host candidate.
Kenya was given blessings by the International Hockey Federation (IHF) and AFHF to host the event ahead of South Africa who were also put on the standby.