Kenya breaks record for attendance at IAAF U-18 event
Kenya has broken the record for the highest attendance at the IAAF World U18 Championships, this is according to the International Association of Athletics Federations.
The penultimate day (Saturday) of the championships saw Kenyans from all walks of life throng the 60,000-seater Kasarani Stadium to watch and cheer the athletes.
The IAAF was clearly impressed by the huge turn out after the opening day on Wednesday only attracted a handful of spectators.
On their official Twitter handle, IAAF congratulated Kenya for showing up to watch the event, estimating the attendance at 50,000 spectators which they termed as a “magical night in Nairobi”.
50,000 specators made it a magic night in Nairobi. The largest ever crowd at a World U18 Championships. #MagicalKenya #WU18Nairobi2017 pic.twitter.com/Q7PJYb6hjT
— IAAF (@iaaforg) July 15, 2017
Senior Kenyan athlete, David Rudisha, who is the 800m Olympic champion, World champion and world record holder over the distance, also congratulated his compatriots for attending the event in large numbers.
I upload Kenyans for breaking the record of the highest attendance ever in #wu18Nairobi2017 #50,000! Amazing Kenyan spirit in athletics. pic.twitter.com/GbQE6ZnAdH
— David Rudisha MBS (@rudishadavid) July 15, 2017
A waiver on the entry fee by President Uhuru Kenyatta during the opening ceremony may have in a large way contributed to the much improved attendance.
In his speech, President Kenyatta had said it was an honour for the country to host the competition on its final edition.
“We are proud as a country to host the rest of the world in this prestigious competition in its final edition and the second country in Africa after Morocco in 2005,” President said.
