Fresh from finishing second in the East Africa Chipukizi swimming tournament in Arusha, Umoja Sharks' coach Fred Omondi has set the bar higher in 2024.
The self-supporting club from Eastland amassed 550 points in the Arusha event and Omondi believes the best is yet to come from his young charges.
"We are only scratching the surface with minimal resources but the mantra of our swimmers is that we strive for the best and next year, we want to finish top in the East Africa tourney,” added Omondi
Tanzania's Riptide Club from Tanzania won the overall title with 990 points but Omondi believes his charges have what it takes to topple them.
"We sent 35 swimmers to the event and I am happy to report that they put up a commendable performance which we hope to build on in the new year, ” observed Omondi.
Umoja Sharks had a strong all-round performance this year, finishing second in the Nairobi Aquatics Championship in March and the Kiambu County Gala in June.
Omondi believes their exploits have attracted more swimmers to the club.
“We were less known at the beginning of this year but our swimmers have put us on the Kenyan map. I know we have the potential to do even better in future events,” added Omondi.
Some of the swimmers who impressed at the East African event include Alistair Ochieng, Mary Gathoni, and George Ngugi who won their respective events in Arusha.
The team received a boost of Sh150,000 from Embakasi West MP Mark Mwenje and Omondi thanked the legislator for the support.
“We would like to thank the MP for the support as it motivated the swimmers to perform well at the event,” said Omondi.
He said the majority of the swimmers have taken a break due to the festivities but will resume in the New Year.
“Following the event in Arusha, the swimmers have taken a break and will resume training in the New Year," he noted.
