President Ruto Meets Kenyan Olympic Medalists At Eldoret State Lodge
Key takeaways
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- Kenyan athletes arriving from the just concluded Paris Olympics were invited for a state breakfast on Thursday morning with President William Ruto.
- The champions jetted into Eldoret aboard a military plane that flew them from the capital Nairobi.
- President Ruto’s breakfast with the medalists is one of the highlights of his Uasin Gishu tour, during which he is also set to oversee the elevation of Eldoret town to city status.
- The state breakfast follows a few hours of confusion where funny-looking athlete statues were installed and later removed by the county government.
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Kenya Airforce flies Kenya’s Olympic heroes and heroines
A Kenya Airforce plane took off from Nairobi heading to Uasin Gishu early Thursday morning.
The plane carried top Kenyan athletic talents, including the legendary Faith Kipyegon and the brilliant Emmanuel Wanyonyi.
Upon arrival at the Eldoret State Lodge, the champions were welcomed by a traditional guard of honor mounted by Maasai warriors.
Walking in a single file led by Faith Kipyegon, the athletes approached the dining table for a sumptuous breakfast with the president.
It was all smiles inside the State Lodge as the President met, greeted, and posed for photographs with the athletes.
The president also presented cash prizes to the athletes with gold medalists taking home a whopping 3 million shillings.
The cash awards presented to the Kenyan winners have been drawn from the Sports, Arts & Social Development Fund.
Controversial athlete statues in Eldoret taken down in early morning operation
As the champions’ breakfast approached in Eldoret, county orderlies raced against time to remove statues reportedly put up to honor athletes.
A few hours earlier, there was confusion in the country after the Uasin Gishu County allegedly installed a Faith Kipyegon statue.
The statue of the female athlete did not resemble Faith Kipyegon and appeared crooked and hastily crafted.
Another male statue was also installed in a similar fashion causing a nationwide uproar.
The widely circulated images of the statue caused a backlash and ridicule toward Uasin Gishu for doing shoddy work in honoring the nation’s champions.
To its credit, Uasin Gishu County swiftly removed the clumsy-looking statues and replaced them with agricultural symbolism.
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Eldoret granted city status
Eldoret town in Uasin Gishu remains busy with activity as it nears city status.
“All arrangements will go on as planned to ensure that we have the best celebrations to welcome the new city of Eldoret,” said Uasin Gishu Governor Jonathan Chelilim Bii alias ‘Koti Moja’.
President William Ruto is set to shortly award the charter to elevate ‘the home of champions’ to city status.
Eldoret’s elevation follows Nakuru, which was conferred city status on 1st December 2021 by former president Uhuru Kenyatta.
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