Young Guns Power MKU to Podium Finish at KUSF National Games

Mount Kenya university students walk through the parade at the opening ceremony of the 10th  KUSF national games

Mount Kenya University (MKU) put up a strong showing at the Kenya University Sports Federation (KUSF) National Games, as the curtains came down on Friday at the University of Eldoret, finishing among the top-performing institutions in the highly competitive championship.

At the end of the 10th edition of the games, which brought together 21 universities from across the country, MKU placed third overall, harvesting an impressive 21 gold medals, 25 silver medals and 26 bronze medals. The university narrowly missed the top position by a small margin of three gold medals.

USIU–Africa emerged overall winners with 24 gold, 13 silver and 21 bronze medals, while Kenyatta University followed closely in second place with 23 gold, 22 silver and 26 bronze medals.

MKU’s medal haul was largely driven by standout performances from several teams, most notably the karate team, described as the university’s “young Turks.” The karatekas were competing at their first major national event, with the squad largely made up of students who joined the university during the September 2025 intake, yet they rose to the occasion with remarkable composure.

Mount Kenya university karate ladies team and coach pose for a photo after being declared women best team overall at the  KUSF national games

The woodball team also delivered exceptional results, emerging as MKU’s most outstanding unit at the games. Despite losing senior players who graduated just days before the competition and were therefore ineligible, the largely youthful squad, supported by a handful of experienced players, stepped up and claimed a significant share of the university’s medals.

The swimming team added to MKU’s success, returning home with multiple medals, while other teams that made notable contributions included men and women taekwondo, tennis men, badminton men and women, table tennis men and women, darts men and athletics for both men and women. However, the athletics and taekwondo teams were affected by the absence of key athletes who are currently in training with the Kenya Army and Kenya Police Service, limiting MKU’s dominance in disciplines where it has traditionally excelled.

Mount Kenya university Tennis men team silver medalist- at the 10th  KUSF national games

Beyond the field of play, MKU made a strong statement on branding and institutional support for sports. All teams were fully branded in official kits across the various disciplines. The university’s presence was further reinforced by its transport motorcade, led by the newly acquired digital sports bus, a Marco Polo, which underscored MKU’s growing investment in sports, talent development and creative activities.

MKU’s Sports, Film, Creative and Performing Arts Coordinator, Mr. William Luta, expressed pride in the teams’ performance, particularly given their youthful makeup.

“I am in awe of how our teams have performed here,” Mr. Luta said. “Most of the players are young, unexposed talents from the recent September intake, but they showed great attitude, resilience and fought bravely for the honour of their institution.”

He noted that the university’s management is intentional about identifying and nurturing talent across all disciplines.

“The university is deliberate in ensuring that no talent is left unattended. This event has also been a learning point for us. We need to improve our training facilities and give our students more opportunities to participate in both competitive and friendly events to gain exposure and confidence,” he added.

While acknowledging the strong finish, Mr. Luta admitted that settling for third place was not MKU’s ultimate target.

Mount Kenya University Taekwondo  captain Emily Mweru enjoying her victory at the 10th  KUSF national games held at University of Eldoret grounds last week.

“Managing third position was not our intention, but we welcome it and will go back to work on our shortcomings. Our performance was affected by the absence of some of our strongest athletes who were absorbed into uniformed forces, weakening areas like athletics and taekwondo, where we have been dominant before. Competition this year was very high, and all teams were extremely competitive.”

As the university heads back home, Mr. Luta said MKU remains optimistic and motivated.

“We are proud of what we have achieved. As we look ahead to 2026, we are excited about more sporting adventures, better performances and continued nurturing of young talents.”

The performance once again highlighted MKU’s growing reputation as a hub for both academic excellence and sporting development on the national stage.