Something extraordinary happened at the World Athletics Championships last week. In these days of professional sports, the prize usually goes to the team which spends the most on its athletes – whether with or without performance enhancing drugs. It was no surprise that the US finished top of the medals table, or that Russia finished third. What was surprising was the identity of the team which finished second.
Kenya is a country which has produced a lot of good runners, but because of limited training facilities and an inability to match the rewards offered by other countries, its top athletes have often been recruited by other, wealthier nations. For example, Bernard Lagat, who won two gold medals for the US out of a team tally of 14, was born in Kenya. Nonetheless the Kenyan team put in an outstanding performance to finish second in the medals tally.
If only the Kenyan business community could emulate the competitiveness of the Kenyan athletes, with victories won through skill and dedication rather than by corruption and cutting corners, the whole country would be wealthier and those who currently live in poverty would have opportunities to work their way up the ladder of success.