Junior Wafalme coach Omondi wants more focus on youth teams

Kenya’s U-18 boys’ volleyball team Assistant Coach Geoffrey Omondi has called for increased attention to youth development from the Kenya Volleyball Federation (KVF).

The Junior Wafalme finished fourth in the recently concluded African Championships cum World Championships qualifiers in Tunisia, and Omondi admits North African opponents are a leap ahead of Kenya due to their big focus on youth structures.

Omondi believes that a greater emphasis on age-group games could improve Kenya’s chances of qualifying for world championships.

“I would like to request the Kenya Volleyball Federation to always think about the juniors as that is where all sports begin. From that level, if I look at the African competitions, we have an easier chance of qualifying for the World Championships through the age-group competitions,” he said.

Omondi, who doubles up as the Trailblazers men’s volleyball team Head Coach, believes a strong youth system will translate to strong senior national teams.

“We should not only concentrate on Malkia Strikers and the Wafalme Stars, we should look at the age groups. These teams will also be able to feed the Malkia Strikers and Wafalme Stars,” Omondi asserted.

“The earlier we begin the better. The more matches they get, the more experienced they will become and we will get a better team at the end of the day,” he added.

Despite facing difficulties with preparations and travel to the Tunisia, Omondi praised his team’s performance.

“We had a good run although we had challenges with preparations and travelling. Despite that, the boys gave their best and we were able to beat two teams out of five that were in the competition. This mean that with more focus on our youth teams, we can compete favourably against the best of the best in the continent,” observed Omondi.