MediaMax Network Limited were crowned the champions of 2019 Sports Journalists Association of (SJAK) sports day champions held on Saturday at the Moi International Sports Centre, Kasarani on Saturday.
In the annual tournament that brought together 13 teams from various media houses, saw Mediamax who were third last year, dislodged defending champions Capital FM to take the title and pocket Ksh 100,000 cash prize.
MediaMax amassed 104 points to secure the coveted silverware in the events that included 5-aside football, 4x100m relay, tug of war, egg and sack races.
Mount Kenya finished second after collecting 100 points while Switch TV closed the podium after garnering 88 points.
Interestingly, MediaMax didn’t win in any category but managed four third place finishes in athletics, football, egg race and sack race coupled with being sixth finisher in tug of war.
The event, which was sponsored by main sponsors Betway, co-sponsored by Coca Cola and Safaricom attracted 13 media houses which was used to by SJAK to belatedly mark the World Sports Journalists Day.
However, the Chief guest, Sports Minister Ambassador Amina Mohammed won the egg race in the executive’s category which also included Betway Country Manager, Leon Kiptum, Safaricom Sales representative Peris Nduta and Sports Kenya Chief Executive Officer Pius Metto.
In football, Capital FM retained the title by pipping Mount Kenya TV 2-1 through post-match penalties after a 1-1 stalemate during normal regulation time.
In tug of war, Metropol edged out Nation Media Group (NMG) 2-1 to take the title that was won by Capital FM last year.
Nation won the 4X100m, as Capital FM emerged victorious in the egg race while the sack race belonged to Ebru TV.
Sports CS Amina Mohammed lauded the initiative and said her ministry was committed to working with the media in improving service delivery and sporting standards.
“It is commendable that media houses consistently allocate adequate airtime and at least five pages in newspapers to Sports. As a key stakeholder, the media plays a pivotal role in Sports through dissemination of all information in the sector. The Ministry’s staff will join the Journalists in next year’s events in the spirit of collaboration and partnership,” the CS said.
The Betway Country Manager Leon Kiptum said they were impressed with the event and hoping for more collaborations with SJAK.
“We are very happy to be part of SJAK, the journalists are doing a commendable job, next year we hope to continue with the partnership,” Kiptum stated.
The Sports Journalist Association of Kenya (SJAK) chairman and International Sports Press Association (AIPS) Africa vice president Chris Mbaisi thanked the sponsors and the participating teams for making the event possible.
“We thank our sponsors for making this happen, its always good to see Sports Journalists mingle and compete. As Sports Journalists, we are used to report and criticize, today we are on the other end. It was exciting to see the fun and competitiveness, we promise to make it better next year,” Mbaisi underscored.
The purpose of the day is to encouraged sports journalists to strive for excellence in their work and to set an example to the world – not only to the to the world of sport, but to the world at large