Kenyans suffer financial blow

NAIROBI • Kenyan athletes stand to lose more than 5 billion shillings (S$66.6 million) in prize money, endorsements, time bonuses and appearance fees because of the coronavirus shutdown.

The country has more than 1,000 elite-level athletes that participate in events from the 400m to the marathon, and whose livelihoods solely depend on running.

However, the pandemic has put a stop to all major sporting events, leading to numerous cancellations and postponements and, with competition on indefinite hold, its runners, like many others, have been hit hard.

The Kenyan government earlier this month closed all sporting faculties in the country in a bid to slow down the spread of Covid-19, so athletes have not been able to train normally.

According to local website Pulse Live, the authorities on Thursday allocated a 10 billion shilling fund for elderly and vulnerable persons, something that Barnaba Korir, an executive member of Athletics Kenya, has welcomed.

Insisting that sportsmen need a government bailout just like other sectors of the economy to be able to stay afloat, he said: "Kenyan athletes will lose more than 5 billion shillings.

"This is from appearance fees, prize money and other endorsements outside their annual contracts. It is a big loss to the Kenyan economy."

New York marathon champion Geoffrey Kamworor said that since the World Half Marathon in Poland was delayed from last month until October, he does not anticipate running until late in the year.

"It was my dream and plan to compete at my fourth World Half Marathon in Poland," the three-time defending champion said. "I wanted so much to gauge myself in one last race before turning my focus to the track competition ahead of the (Tokyo) Olympic Games. Both have now been postponed."

Kamworor, 27, added that his peers were financially suffering as everything was on hold and supported the decision by the Kenyan government to provide cash bailouts to the most vulnerable.

"Now I live in Eldoret with my family. However, it has been tough because when you are used to training together then suddenly you are not allowed to, it's a bit hard," he said.

"But it's the situation we all find ourselves in and we must adjust accordingly. That's the nature of life and sports."

Typically, athletes get paid quarterly for their endorsement contracts, which provide the base level of their income.

Those payments are still flowing according to Korir and, for the top runners, this might continue for some time.

But there are fears that athletes, whose contracts have lapsed and those that are due to end in September after the track season traditionally closes, may find it hard to renew their deals.

"Athletes need races to prove their fitness. That is not there and top shoe companies may be reluctant to open new contracts," Korir added.

All of them will also lose out on the time bonuses. Events like the Diamond League and the Continental Tour and Indoor Tour have all been postponed, leading to a sizeable drop in income.

"They could even get paid more if they broke certain performance benchmarks stated in their contracts. None of those will have to be paid now," Korir said.

The loss of appearance fees, prize money and performance bonuses mean certain athletes will suffer significant income dips.

That would be especially true for marathon runners, who can make hundreds of thousands of dollars from just one race.

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