Olympic Champion Alexandra Ndolo Misses Out On Vital World Cup, Accuses Govt

Kenyan Fencer and Olympic Champion Alexandra Ndolo has announced that she will not take part in the upcoming World Cup event in Italy, which would have boosted her hopes for qualifying for the Paris 2024 Olympic Games in France.

In a statement via Instagram on Friday, November 10, the 36-year-old attributed the developments to the Kenyan government reportedly failing to enrol her in the prestigious competition.

"I will not be participating in the first World Cup of the 2023/24 season. No Legnano for me. Yesterday I faced a situation I have never experienced in 15+ years as a professional athlete," she announced.

"I arrived at the competition sight and was informed that I not only had no hotel reservation but more importantly, was not enrolled in the competition."

Alexandra Ndolo in action at the Fencing World Cup in Estonia on November 13, 2022. /TWITTER.ALEXANDRA NDOLO

Ndolo accused the government of being unprofessional and warned that their silence could cost her a place in the top 16 fencers.

According to her, she asked the Kenyan Federation to register her in the competition and make hotel reservations for her and her team weeks before the tournament.

"Even if I had insisted on reserving the hotel myself (I have done it all of last season), I could not have enrolled in the competition myself. This can only be done by federations, not individual athletes.

"I am beyond frustrated about this situation!! Not competing at this competition means I can’t defend the points I got at last year's first Worldcup and as a result, I will drop out of the top 16 in the world ranking," she added.

She further termed the move a massive blow to her as she would not be able to collect crucial points for the ongoing Olympic qualification.

"This level of unprofessionalism is in stark contrast to anything I stand for. Months of practice for nothing.

"But this will not break my determination or self-belief! I will go back home and focus on the next World Cup in Vancouver (Canada)," she concluded.

The incident marked the second time Ndolo accused the government of malice and unmet promises not only to her but to the rest of her fellow country athletes.

On Saturday, May 20, Ndolo bemoaned the lack of support from the Kenyan Fencing Federation in her ambition to represent the country in the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.

She expressed how fed up she was with the lies she alleged came from the Kenyan sports system that was meant to support her in realising her 2024 Olympics dream.

Ndolo confessed to having single-handedly financed and organised her entire fencing season and had planned, booked and paid for every single training camp and competition.

Additionally, she revealed that she had travelled to many competitions without the assistance of her coach and had not at any point taken a physio with her during her trips, something she said was unusual and unheard of for a fencer of her calibre.

"I can’t afford to promote fencing in Kenya, assure visibility for the young Kenyan athletes, and the young Kenyan coaches and provide results for the officials whilst getting no support whatsoever," she indicated.

Ndolo called out the Kenya Fencing Federation as well as the country's sports system for filling her with empty words and promises for the past nine months, despite them expressing their happiness to boast about their new top 10 world ranking player and a new sport which is common in developed countries.

"I am very sensitive to money problems because being the child of immigrants usually means growing up culturally richer, but financially poorer than most of your age-mates (I guess there is something about seeing or rather feeling your parents struggle that never quite leaves you).

"Publicly admitting all of this is very difficult for me, but at this point keeping quiet is taking a toll on my performance, more than any injury or heartache has ever done," she added.