From Olympic stadiums around the world to the running tracks of Europe, Kenyan athletes have spent decades chasing glory far from home.

They have won Olympic medals, world titles and major races on some of the biggest stages in athletics. Their success has made Kenya one of the most recognised athletics nations in the world.

Now, for the first time, one of the sport’s biggest stages is coming to them.

Nairobi has been awarded the 2029 World Athletics Championships, making it the first African city to host the senior global championships.

The announcement on September 15, 2026, is a landmark moment for Kenyan athletics.

It means that in 2029, the world’s leading athletes will travel to Nairobi to compete for world titles, while Kenya’s own stars will have the rare opportunity to race for global honours in front of a home crowd.

The story goes back to January 2023.

Then Sports Cabinet Secretary Ababu Namwamba announced that Kenya would bid to host the 2029 World Athletics Championships. At the same time, Kenya was pursuing the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations together with Uganda and Tanzania.

The AFCON bid was successful later that year.

Three years later, Nairobi has secured the athletics prize.

It was not Kenya’s first attempt. Nairobi had previously bid to host the 2025 World Championships, but Tokyo was eventually awarded the event.

The 2029 bid brought another opportunity, and this time Nairobi was successful.

The choice is fitting for a country that has produced generations of Olympic and world champions.

From the high-altitude training grounds of Iten and Kaptagat to tracks across the country, young athletes continue to dream of following in the footsteps of Kenya’s greatest runners.

For years, those dreams have taken athletes overseas.

In 2029, the world will come to Nairobi.

Kasarani Stadium will be at the centre of the championships. The venue is undergoing renovation ahead of AFCON 2027, giving Kenya an important opportunity to prepare a modern facility for two major international sporting events.

Nairobi also has experience hosting major athletics competitions. The city staged the World U18 Championships in 2017 and the World U20 Championships in 2021, while the Kip Keino Classic has regularly brought leading international athletes to Kenya.

But the World Athletics Championships are on another level.

The fastest sprinters in the world will line up in Nairobi. The best hurdlers, jumpers and throwers will compete for medals. And Kenya’s distance runners will have the chance to fight for world titles with thousands of home fans behind them.

For a young Kenyan athlete sitting in the stands, it could be more than just another competition.

It could be the moment they see their sporting heroes up close and begin to believe that the next Olympic champion could come from their own neighbourhood.

There is still work ahead before 2029. Kenya will have to ensure the stadium, transport, accommodation, security and other facilities are ready to meet World Athletics requirements.

But the destination is now clear.

The World Championships are coming to Nairobi.

After decades of Kenya’s athletes travelling around the world in search of Olympic and world glory, the biggest stars in athletics will soon be travelling in the opposite direction.

They will be coming to Kenya.

And in 2029, when the starting gun goes off at Kasarani, Kenyan athletes will not be chasing history somewhere overseas.

They will be chasing it at home.