Former Boston Marathon champion Ibrahim Kipkemboi Hussein has hailed Kenya’s successful bid to host the 2029 World Athletics Championships, describing the award as a historic opportunity for the country and the continent.
Hussein, who chaired Kenya’s bidding committee, thanks President William Ruto and Athletics Kenya (AK) president, General Jackson Tuwei, for entrusting him with the responsibility of leading the campaign. However, he credited the Kenyan government and President William Ruto for providing political backing to the bid.
“We thought of the minister to support the process, but the president came out with a big statement. He gave us a video that was very powerful. Other cities had mayors and city leaders, but here the president came out, which was a turning point for me as chairman of the bidding committee,” he said.
Hussein also pointed to the support Kenya received from some of its most celebrated athletes and sports personalities during the presentation.
“During our presentation, we had good people like Kipchoge Keino, Charles Asati and Eliud Kipchoge, among others, who supported the bid,” he said.
Following Ethiopia’s withdrawal, Hussein said the campaign also received support from prominent African athletes, including Uganda’s Joshua Cheptegei, Botswana’s Letsile Tebogo and Ethiopian great Haile Gebrselassie.
“When Ethiopia pulled out, this was an African thing. Athletes Cheptegei, Tebogo and Haile Gebrselassie gave us a good appeal. Haile was gracious enough to make an appeal. We want to celebrate and appreciate the chance to host the 2029 World Athletics Championships. I want to thank Athletics Kenya and General Tuwei,” Hussein said.
Kenya’s successful bid came after the country lost the rights to host the 2025 World Championships to Japan.
“Two years ago, we lost the 2025 hosting rights to Japan, but we didn’t give up. Tuwei appointed me to lead the bidding team. I took up the responsibility, formed a small team and engaged with the bid evaluation panel of World Athletics,” he said.
Hussein said the bidding process was highly competitive because the World Championships is one of the biggest events on the World Athletics calendar and the governing body conducts extensive evaluations before awarding the event.
“For them to give it to a certain country, they have to ensure that they get the best nation. We worked to know our strengths and weaknesses, which we managed well,” he said.
Kenya’s bid, he added, was also driven by World Athletics’ desire to take its flagship championships to Africa. The World Championships has not been held on African soil since its inception in 1983.
“Since 1983, the World Championships has never come to Africa, and Kenya’s contribution, with our athletes competing in each event, was a positive factor,” Hussein said.
The bid could not have proceeded without government support, Hussein said, thanking the national government and Nairobi City County for backing the project. Kenya initially joined several countries that had expressed interest in hosting the championships. The country was subsequently invited to participate in an observer programme involving seven nations, including two African countries, Kenya and Ethiopia.
“After the observer programme, which lasted five days, we attended all the sessions. In Africa, Kenya was on top after hosting other events that were very serious. Ethiopia then withdrew,” he said.
Kenya subsequently completed the pre-qualification process before submitting its initial bid. The World Athletics evaluation team later visited Kenya to verify the information contained in the bid documents.
“We took them to the main venue of the championships, hotels and training venues. Accommodation was particularly important because participating teams are expected to receive equal treatment. All teams must be treated equally and put in the same level of hotels. This was an area where we were very lucky because our hospitality industry is booming,” he said.
Kenya submitted bids for both 2029 and 2031 but placed greater emphasis on 2029 because it would provide the opportunity to stage the final World Championships marathon before the event undergoes a planned format change.
“We were bidding for 2029 and 2031, but we were focusing on 2029 because it will be the last time a marathon will be run, unlike in 2031. And you know Kenya is the home of marathons,” Hussein said.
He envisages a spectacular marathon course through Nairobi, with Uhuru Park serving as both the start and finish point.
“The marathon will start at Uhuru Park and run along the National Park. Athletes will be running while animals will be just at the fence, then they will finish at Uhuru Park after showcasing our capital city, Nairobi. This is a good way to bring in tourists,” he said.
Hussein said the financial capacity of the host city was also considered during the bidding process, with London used as an example of a city with significant financial muscle. For Hussein, the successful bid carries a personal significance because of his own place in Kenyan athletics history.
“As a chairman of the bidding committee, I will make history. I am a history maker after being the first African to win Boston, and here I chair a bidding committee to host the World Championships,” he said.
He believes Kenya’s record of hosting major athletics events strengthened its case.
“Since 2007, when we had the World Cross Country in Mombasa, it was the best. In 2010, we had the African Championships, in 2017 we hosted the Under-18 Championships, then we hosted the Under-20 Championships despite the issue of COVID-19,” he said.
“Every year, we have the Kip Keino Classic, followed by Sirikwa Cross Country as well as Chepsaita, and that shows that we are good.”
Hussein said the championships will also provide Kenyan athletes with an important opportunity to compete at home before their families and supporters.
“This race will give good opportunities to Kenyan athletes to showcase their talents. This event will spur and organise big events. This will assist us to organise events and give chances to our athletes to compete in various events across the world.”
On anti-doping, Hussein defended Kenya’s efforts to combat the problem, arguing that doping violations should not be interpreted as evidence of a systemic programme.
“Those found doping are individuals doing so, not sporadic and supported doping. Kenya is the only country that has a budget on doping and we are the most tested across the world,” he said.
Looking ahead, Hussein said preparations for the championships must begin immediately, including the establishment of an effective Local Organising Committee and strengthening the country’s technical workforce.
“We have enough facilities to host the event. We need to set up a good Local Organising Committee. World Athletics and others need to start working now by putting the right people in the right positions. This will give us a chance to improve on our technical officials.”
For Hussein, the award is therefore not simply an opportunity to stage another athletics competition, but a chance for Kenya to demonstrate its organisational capacity, promote Nairobi as a global destination and create opportunities for the next generation of athletes