Kenya's World Woodball highlights growing talent and global partnerships

Participants at the World Cup Woodball Championship held in Malaysia. [Courtesy]

Kenya's impressive performance at the 10th World Woodball Championship in Perlis, Malaysia, has proved the country's growing stature in the sport.

The national team returned home with a historic haul of seven medals—one silver and six bronze—from the championship held between July 24 and 29, 2026.

The medals came after a series of closely contested matches against some of the world's strongest woodball nations, with Indonesia emerging as the overall senior champions.

Kenya's closest brush with gold came in the men's fairway doubles, where Ben Petros Moseti and David Wairimu Mungai forced Indonesia into a dramatic penalty shootout after a 4-4 draw in regulation time. The Kenyan duo eventually settled for silver after narrowly losing 2-1 in the shootout.

Additional bronze medals were won by David Wairimu Mungai and Jamiah Khalid in the men's fairway singles, Ezra Moseti and David Sang Ebenezer in the men's fairway doubles, Dorcas Murithi and Jamiah Khalid in the women's open doubles, the men's open doubles team, and the Kenyan women's fairway team.

Beyond the medals, the tournament demonstrated how the CBC is reshaping learners' lives by encouraging students to nurture their talents alongside academics.

Schools and universities have increasingly embraced woodball as one of the disciplines through which learners develop leadership, teamwork, resilience and problem-solving skills while opening pathways to scholarships and international competition.

The championship also showcased the importance of partnerships between government, educational institutions and sports federations.

Kenya's participation was funded by the Ministry of Sports, while Mount Kenya University (MKU) supported the team's training programme and local transport, ensuring athletes had adequate preparation before travelling to Malaysia.

Education stakeholders saying the achievement reflects the impact of talent development under the Competency-Based Curriculum (CBC), stronger institutional partnerships and increased international exposure for young athletes.

Head of Logistics and Technicals for Team Kenya, William Luta, who also serves as Head of Sports and Creative Arts at MKU, said the performance was encouraging despite narrowly missing several gold medals.

"This has been a very good performance, even though it fell short of our targets. We expected gold in several categories, but the team fell slightly short of the international expertise utilized by their competitors," said Luta.

Team captain David Sang Ebenezer attributed the success to teamwork and dedicated coaching.

"We thank God Almighty for the strength, and we appreciate coach Mboya for his immense contribution in training and the encouragement that kept us going," he said.

Kenya Woodball President Antony Mwanzia said the championship reinforced the need for regular international exchange programmes and competitive exposure if Kenyan athletes are to challenge consistently for world titles.

“Such exchange programmes expose learners to different training methods, cultures and technologies while building confidence and global networks,” he said.

Team Kenya posing for a photo at the awards ceremony podium during the World Cup Woodball Championship held in Malaysia. [Courtesy]

Secretary General Samuel Litaba thanked the government for sponsoring the team's participation and called for sustained investment in overseas tournaments, coaching exchanges and athlete development.

“As Kenya begins preparations for the 2028 Beach World Cup and the 11th World Woodball Championship in 2030 since the success in Malaysia came as another milestone for university sports in the region,” Litaba said.

He further noted that these experiences complement the CBC's emphasis on practical learning, innovation and holistic development by allowing students to translate classroom competencies into real-world achievement.

Mount Kigali University Rwanda (MKUR) recently won the inaugural Rwanda Varsity League Football title after an unbeaten campaign, earning the right to represent Rwanda at the East African Inter-Universities Championship in Uganda later this year.