Racing in Kenya New generation of jockeys and trainers dispels perceptions of colonial-era sport

New generation of jockeys and trainers dispels perceptions of colonial-era sport

- Carlos Mureithi

The spectators on the grandstand at Ngong Racecourse in Nairobi jumped to their feet as the four horses competing in the fifth race of the Day of Champions – the last meet of the season – came around the final corner. "Bedford! Bedford! Bedford," some roared, punching the air as the horse, jockeyed by Michael Fundi, broke into a gallop, passed the leader, and stormed to victory.

Fundi, who had started the day leading the jockey standings, was crowned the season's champion jockey after the last race. At 20, he was the youngest in a decade.

"This is one of those feelings that you can't put in words," he beamed after his award presentation.

Fundi embodies the growing involvement of black Kenyans in horse racing, changing attitudes to a sport that has been synonymous with the country's white minority since the colonial era.

"Growing up, that was a sport for other people, not me," said Muturi Mutuota, who like many other children in Nairobi in the 1980s and 1990s was taken to the racetrack by his parents on weekends.

Now Mutuota, who is in his 40s, is a director at the Jockey Club of Kenya, which operates and regulates the sport, and at this year's Day of Champions, three of the seven trainers were black, as were 10 of the 13 jockeys.

Raised in Nairobi by his grandparents, Fundi fell in love with horse racing when his grandfather started taking him to races at Ngong when he was 13.

His grandfather persuaded Steve Njuguna, a former champion jockey and a trainer at the time, to teach Fundi how to race.