The Kenya Sevens affectionately known as Shujaa, continued their strong performance from Thursday, winning back-to-back matches to secure a 9th place finish overall in the 2024 Paris Olympics.
This result mirrors their performance at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, where they also finished 9th after winning two matches.
On Thursday, Shujaa triumphed over Uruguay in a thrilling sudden-death match, ending with a 19-14 victory. This win set up a contest against Samoa for the 9th-10th place position.
Kenya did not disappoint, avenging their 26-0 defeat to Samoa in the last Pool B match by securing a 10-5 victory. John Okoth was the hero, scoring two tries to seal the win.
Head coach Kevin Wambua expressed satisfaction with his team’s performance, highlighting the experience gained by his relatively inexperienced players.
“I am so happy with what the boys have done. Finishing 9th, like in Tokyo, is not stagnant nor an improvement; for us, it was about getting the experience. This team cannot be compared to the Tokyo one that had stars like Collins Injera, Andrew Amonde, and Willy Ambaka… it’s a pretty young squad,” Wambua said.
Shujaa will now shift their focus to preparing for the HSBC World Rugby Sevens Series, where they are poised to make a swift comeback.
