Photo: World Athletics.
The World Athletics Council announced its decision on Tuesday: the 2029 World Athletics Championships will be held in Nairobi. This is a historic choice, as Africa has never before hosted this major athletics event. With the UCI Road World Championships in Rwanda in 2025, the Youth Olympic Games in Senegal in 2026, and the World Athletics Championships in Kenya in 2029, the African continent's ambitions are undeniable.
"Nairobi has shown that it's her time."
« We were fortunate to receive four exceptional applications for 2029 and 2031, and this was not an easy decision for the Council to make.explains President Sebastian Coe. The quality, ambition and commitment shown by the four candidates underline the strength and global appeal of the World Athletics Championships. Munich has been awarded the 2031 World Championships, a significant vote of confidence as the Bavarian capital seeks the national nomination to host the Olympic Games. London and Rome, however, remain without a bid.
« Nairobi and Munich have presented two compelling proposals., Coe continues. They offer very different but equally exciting opportunities for our sport, and I am delighted that we can now begin working with these two cities to host two world-class championships. We continue to fulfill our mission of developing athletics globally by holding our World Athletics Championships in Asia, Africa, and Europe for the next three editions. »
Nairobi has already hosted the U18 World Championships in 2018 and the U20 World Championships in 2021. The Kenyan capital had submitted its bid to host the 2025 World Championships, which were awarded to Tokyo, and returned with an even stronger case for 2029 "World Athletics points out. The timing will be ideal since the Kasarani stadium is already undergoing modernization work in preparation for the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations.
« Kenya is one of the great nations of athletics. Athletes such as world gold medalists Faith Kipyegon, Vivian Cheruiyot, Eliud Kipchoge, Hellen Obiri, and David Rudisha, as well as two-time Olympic champion Kip Keino, multiple world cross-country champion Paul Tergat, and multiple world half-marathon champion Tegla Loroupe, have made their mark on the history of our sport., Coe reminds us. It was important that the World Athletics Championships come to Africa as soon as we had the right host, the right bid, and the right conditions. Nairobi has forcefully demonstrated that its time was right. "In his wake, the whole of African sport continues to make its place on the international stage.
