NGPU
January 24, 2024
Kenya Paragliding Open 2024 Championships Kick Off at Kijabe Hills
Written By James M Alumera
County Executive for Youth, Sports, Gender, and Social Services, Josephine Atieno attended the inaugural Kenya Paragliding Open 2024 Championships in Naivasha Sub-County.
The event organized by the Sky Nomad Club, attracted over a hundred participants both local and foreign. Joel Cheluget, the Chairman of the Paragliding Federation of Kenya, highlighted the participation of six gliders from Nakuru County.
Enduring challenging wind and more than five hours in the air, the paragliders showcased their skills in the sport and finally landed at the Safari Centre grounds, using GPRS navigating maps.
The CECM expressed her joy as Nakuru County played host to this remarkable event. She extended an open invitation to the public to witness the incredible talent on display, emphasizing Nakuru’s abundance of sports facilities, tourist attractions, and hotels.
The gliders use their abilities to endure challenging winds. Each glider has strings that the pilot uses to control.
The competition aimed at improving and fostering better ways for the youth and any other sports enthusiasts to embrace Paragliding Races will end at the weekend.
The leadership has mapped out various sporting sites for this great sport to be held across the country. The Paragliders can fly more than 10 to 20 people in the air at a friendly price of Ksh. 14,000 for 2 to 3 hours. The Federation looks forward to recruiting an unlimited number of gliders across the country before the end of the year.
Nakuru has a lot of sporting centres including Menengai Crater and Eburru Mbaruk Mountains where paragliders can fly and earn experiences to improve their socio-economic livelihoods.
The Nakuru County’s paragliders are David Chege, Edward Ndungu , Daniel Kamau , George Ngucanirie , Joseph Kihara, Edward Mbugua , Rymoild Wairimu, David Mungai , Sofia Waithera. These upcoming paragliders, however, don’t fly often due to a lack of paragliding equipment.
