The 22nd African Athletics Championships are taking place from June 8 to 12, 2022 in Côte d'Or. Sebastian Coe, president of the International Federation (World Athletics), present in Mauritius, wants to reaffirm…

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Sebastian Coe: 'World Athletics is really committed to African athletics'

World Athletics President Sebastian Coe ahead of the 2021 World Under-20 Championships, at the Moi Kasarani International Sports Center in Nairobi.

AFP - SIMON MAINA

Text by: Abdoollah Earally Follow

3 mins

The 22nd African Athletics Championships are taking place from June 8 to 12, 2022 in Côte d'Or.

Sebastian Coe, President of the International Federation (World Athletics), present in Mauritius, wants to reaffirm the commitment of World Athletics to African athletics and its most prestigious competition.

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Sebastian Coe, why did you come to Mauritius?

Sebastian Coe: I am here in Mauritius to enjoy some very good athletics, the African Championships.

This is the first time we have been able to organize these championships in four years because of the pandemic.

So I am delighted to be here, to spend time with the member federations and the African Confederation as well as the athletes.

What do you think of this event?

It is vital.

Athletes rely heavily on competitions.

Competition is the platform we can use to showcase them.

This is what encourages more young people to persevere in our sport.

So getting the African Championships back on the calendar was a really big deal.

And I would like to thank the Mauritian government for having made all this possible thanks in particular to this fabulous sports complex.

How do you judge the level of the competition so far?

I attend world-class times.

I attended a 100 meters which was very competitive, the final of the men's 100 meters with three athletes who ran in less than 10 seconds.

It is therefore a continent that is growing outside of endurance events.

We are seeing very, very good talent emerging in competitions, as well as over short distances, especially in sprints.

What do you think of the Kenyan Ferdinand Omanyala, African champion in the 100 meters?

He is an exceptional talent.

And that's really good for Kenya.

Because, if you close your eyes and imagine Kenyan athletes, you tend to go back in time with Kip Keino or more recently Wilson Kipketer, David Rudisha or Tegla Loroupe.

Fantastic athletes!

But you won't think about sprinting.

And it's really great that you have sprinters taking up as much space and generating as much interest as endurance athletes.

Many international federations invest in Africa to promote their sport, such as football.

Why don't we see the same thing with athletics?

Many countries invest heavily in athletics: Ethiopia, Kenya, Uganda, Botswana... But football has always been a very powerful sport, historically.

But I have very good discussions with political leaders in Africa.

They understand that athletics is not just about medal tables and top athletes.

Athletics is the best sport to accompany a health policy – especially in this post-covid period – to keep a community fit and healthy.

So I think governments understand that it's not just about events, important as they are.

It is also about using our sport to help,

What about the investment and promotion of athletics in Africa by the International Federation?

We do it all the time.

We spend about $2 million a year on African athletics.

We even made a contribution here for the budget of this event because of the additional cost linked to the Covid.

So World Athletics is really committed to African athletics, not just in words but also in terms of finances.

Sebastian Coe: 'World Athletics is really committed to African athletics'

Sebastian Coe: 'World Athletics is really committed to African athletics'

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