Kenyan teens eye history at Winter Youth Olympics in South Korea
Kenya’s France-based Issa Laborde cruises down the hill in a past skiing championships. Laborde will compete at the 2024 Winter Youth Olympics scheduled from January 19 to February 1 in Gangwon, South Korea.
What you need to know:
- Ongong’a will field in cross-country skiing while Laborde goes for alpine skiing where he will battle in four events; Slalom, Giant Slalom, Alpine Combined and Super-G.
- Ongong’á will be the first African to compete cross-country skiing at the Winter Youth Olympics.
Kenyan youngsters Ashley Ongong’a and Issa Laborde leave Europe Wednesday heading to the uncharted waters of South Korea to represent the country in a sport that is not so familiar locally.
It all started with Philip Boit, a cross-country skier and the first Kenyan to participate in the Winter Olympics at the 2002 Salt Lake City Winter Olympics before showing up at the 2006 Turin Winter Olympics.
Boit finished 64th in the sprint race, beating three competitors and was placed 92nd in the 15-kilometre Classic in Turin.
The 52-year-old Boit had planned to retire after the 2010 Winter Olympics to be held in Vancouver but failed to meet the requirements needed to start in the Games as he missed the limit by two points.
His attempts to qualify for the Olympics had been hampered by illness. Then came the 25-year-old Sabrina Simader, the first woman to represent Kenya at winter events when she competed in alpine skiing at the 2016 Lillehammer Winter Youth Olympics in Norway.
Simader competed for Kenya at the 2018 Winter Olympics in the alpine skiing events, becoming the first female and alpine skier to compete for Kenya at the Winter Olympics. In comes Italy-based Ongong’a, and Laborde, who resides in France.
Ashley Ongonga will compete at the 2024 Winter Youth Olympics scheduled from January 19 to February 1 in Gangwon, South Korea.
The duo will compete at the 2024 Winter Youth Olympics scheduled from January 19 to February 1 in Gangwon, South Korea.
Ongong’a will field in cross-country skiing while Laborde goes for alpine skiing where he will battle in four events; Slalom, Giant Slalom, Alpine Combined and Super-G.
Ongong’á will be the first African to compete cross-country skiing at the Winter Youth Olympics.
“We are not really pushing the youngsters to win medals in the championships but have Kenyan presence felt across the championships,” said the National Olympic Committee of Kenya (NOC-K) secretary general Francis Mutuku.
NOC-K’s ultimate target for the youngsters are the 2030 Winter Olympics and not the 2026 Winter Olympics in Italy where they have positioned Simader for the Games.
The two athletes aged 16, benefited from the Olympic Solidarity grants towards their preparation, which involved kitting, equipment and competition fees.
They qualified based on International Ski Federation (FIS) ranking of the Youth Olympic Games quota allocation as of December 18, last year.
Ongong’a and Laborde underwent an intensive 14-day training camp in South Korea under the PyeongChang 2018 Legacy Foundation.
NOC-K also gave financial and administrative support to participate in FIS events to get ranking points that earned them qualification.
The PyeongChang 2018 Legacy Foundation focuses on youth-oriented sports activities and the development of winter sports.
Born in Italy on July 9, 2007, Ongong’a holds dual Kenyan and Italian citizenship but opted to represent Kenya internationally.
She is guided by some of the best ski coaches in Italy, where she attends a sports school, Bachmann Sport College in Tarvisio, under coach Francesco Silverio. It is here that she has honed her skiing skills and achieved notable successes at various competitions.
Ongong’a’s achievements include multiple victories in cross-country ski, regional and national championships.
Laborde, who was born March 12, 2007 in France, was placed top 20 in Silver Cup Circuit in France and qualified for the French National Championships. He represented Kenya at the 2023 World Championships “La Scara 2023.”
