Sports · updated 1h ago · 3 min read
World Athletics Awards Nairobi 2029 World Athletics Championships, Munich Hosts 2031
Nairobi will host the 2029 World Athletics Championships, the first African host. Munich will host the 2031 edition, per World Athletics decision.
What primarily justified Nairobi’s win.
9 of 10 outlets skipped it: kenya had the highest athletics interest among surveyed markets.
19outlets compared
Same story, two versions
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The New York Times
“According to Nielsen Research, Kenya is the single-most interested market in athletics, with 68 per cent”Read the original ↗
The Telegraph
“the decision was made across multiple parameters, notably the growth potential of athletics”Read the original ↗
The New York Times foregrounds Nielsen fan-interest figures, while The Telegraph foregrounds growth potential as the key decision criterion.
Nairobi wins 2029 Worlds
Nairobi, Kenya will host the 2029 World Athletics Championships, becoming the first African host for the event, after World Athletics announced the decision following a council meeting in Budapest on Tuesday.
“The 2029 World Athletics Championships will be hosted in Nairobi, Kenya”
World Athletics president Sebastian Coe said, “Taking our championships to Africa for the first time will be historic,” as he described Nairobi and Munich as “very different but exciting opportunities for our sport.”
The 2031 championships were awarded to Munich, Germany, while the 2027 event has already been awarded to Beijing, according to the announcements made after the recently concluded Ultimate Championship.
The decision also means that three consecutive editions will be staged outside of Europe, with Beijing next year following Tokyo in 2025, and Coe said Europe is “a heartland” while World Athletics has a responsibility to grow the sport’s footprint.
World Athletics said Nairobi’s selection marks the first time the World Athletics Championships will be staged on African soil, with the Kenyan capital set to host the 2029 edition before returning to Germany for a third time two years later.
Coe cites bids and legacy
Coe told a press conference that “We were fortunate to have four outstanding bids for 2029 and 2031, and this was not an easy decision for the Council,” after London, Munich and Rome were among the competing cities.
The Telegraph reported that London lost its attempt to host the 2029 championships, noting that the World Athletics Council announced on Tuesday that Nairobi would host, with London’s submission facing challenges including a dispute with West Ham United over the availability of the stadium during the football season.T
In Budapest, Coe also said the council decision would deliver World Athletics Championships in Asia, Africa, and Europe over the next three editions, and he framed Nairobi’s win as a chance to “supercharge the development of our sport in Kenya and across Africa.”
The Guardian quoted a London team source saying they were “gutted” at the news, while it also quoted Coe saying “This has not, as you can imagine, been an easy decision,” as he pointed to “four compelling propositions.”
World Athletics said Nairobi’s bid drew on experience from hosting the World Under-18 Championships in 2017 and the World Under-20 Championships in 2021, and it tied the plan to a renovated Kasarani Stadium undergoing a complete structural overhaul ahead of hosting the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) 2027.
What Nairobi’s hosting means
World Athletics said the 2029 championships will build on a record of World Athletics events staged across Africa, including Kampala in Uganda hosting the World Cross Country Championships in 2017 and Gaborone in Botswana hosting the World Athletics Relays in 2026.
“Kasarani Stadium will be fit to host the nine-day event”
The New York Times reported that Nairobi’s multi-purpose Kasarani Stadium will be fit to host the nine-day event as it is currently undergoing renovation ahead of next year’s African Cup of Nations, and it said AFCON will be another historic moment as the global continental football tournament goes to east Africa for the first time.T
In the bidding context, Coe said Nairobi has “steadily built its credentials” by hosting youth championships, and he pointed to World Athletics research that Kenya is the single-most interested market in athletics, with 68 per cent of Kenyans rating their interest very high against a 39 per cent global average.
The Telegraph reported that World Athletics would provide feedback to London on the reasons behind the decision but would not elaborate on where the proposal had fallen short, and it quoted UK Athletics chief executive Jack Buckner saying, “We are deeply disappointed that the 2029 World Athletics Championships will not be held in London.”T
World Athletics also said the next World Athletics Championships will be held in Beijing from 10–19 September 2027, while both Nairobi 2029 and Munich 2031 will also take place in September at the climax at the end of the season.