For the third time in a row, Kenya will be hosting the 2020 under 20 Rugby Barthés Trophy in April 19th to 26th at RFUEA, Nairobi.
Today, the Rugby Africa announced that Kenya Rugby (KRU) had successfully bided to host the junior tournament for three consecutive years.
“The Kenya Rugby Union and the
entire Kenyan people are thrilled by the excellent news from Rugby Africa
awarding Kenya the Barthes U20 Trophy hosting rights for the next three years.
It is indeed a great honour to all of us. Special mention to our Ministry of
Sports, Culture and Heritage under the astute leadership of Amb. (Dr.) Amina
Mohamed who have supported our bid. We will work closely with Rugby Africa, the
government, commercial sponsors, media and other stakeholders to ensure
successful delivery of the events,” states Kenya Rugby Union Chairman
Oduor Gangla.
Guédel N’Diaye, President of the Competition Commission at
Rugby Africa and President of the Senegal Rugby Federation, looks forward to
launch an exciting 2020 season:
“The U20 Barthés Trophy marks the
first tournament in the Rugby Africa calendar this year. We believe that we
need this kind of commitment as shown by Kenya Rugby Union to strengthen our
sport for a sustainable and strong future. With solid commitment we can equally
build a successful broadcast and commercial program around the event. The young
players are our major asset in terms of growing participation and fan base. The
U20 Barthés Trophy tournament speaks to our long-term strategy for Africa to
become the breeding ground of the next generation of world class athletes.
Through this competition we can measure the real progress accomplished by the
federation in terms of the development rugby amongst the youth. 80 % of the
selected players evolved from their local championships.”
The Barthés Trophy is the only junior tournament in Africa
and 8 national U20 teams compete for the title. Participating teams in 2020 (in
order of the current ranking): Kenya, Namibia, Senegal, Madagascar, Tunisia,
Zimbabwe, Côte d’Ivoire, Zambia.
Barthés Trophy pooling
Pool A:
Kenya
Madagascar
Tunisia
Zambia
Pool B:
Namibia
Senegal
Zimbabwe
Côte d’Ivoire
Match Schedule:
April 19, 2020
M1: KEN vs ZAM
M2: MAD vs TUN
M3: NAM vs CIV
M4: SEN vs ZIM
April 22, 2020
M5: Loser M1 vs Loser M2
M6: Loser M3 vs Loser M4
M7: Winner M1 vs Winner M2
M8: Winner M3 vs Winner M4
April 26, 2020
M9: A4 vs B4
M10: A3 vs B3
M11: A2 vs B2
M12: A1 vs B1
Source: KRU.co.ke