Over 20 teams have lined up for this weekend’s inaugural Uasin Gishu Open Hockey tournament to be staged at The University of Eldoret (UOE) grounds
Sponsored by Nikku Lochab, the tournament, by the time of going for press had attracted 26 teams, 16 men and 10 for women set to kick off on Saturday to Sunday.
Homeside The Panthers will be using hone ground advantage to claim the title after missing to be promoted to the Kenya Hockey Super League and remained in the third tier of Kenya Hockey national League.
Panthers team manager Emmanuel Asaph, who is also the Uasin Gishu County Hockey chairman said they are well prepared for the tournament that has attracted top teams in the country.
“We have prepared well for the inaugural championships this weekend. We want them to be successful being the first tournament in the county,” said Asaph.
“We are using this tournament to select a formidable team for Uasin Gishu county ahead of new season. We want a good team that will compete at the national level,” added Asaph.
Nikku Lochab is the main sponsor of the tournament and was o[optimistic that the tournament will be successful come this weekend.
“We are using this tournament to nurture future players in hockey. Our main aim is to get quality hockey players in this region. Hockey is a good sport that needs to be embraced,” said Lochab who will be providing trophies among other prizes.