Sept 15 (Reuters) – Nairobi has been selected to host the 2029 World Athletics Championships, with the Kenyan capital becoming the first African city to stage the event.
World Athletics announced the decision on Tuesday after its council meeting in Budapest, while also awarding the 2031 edition to Munich.
Nairobi had previously failed in its bid to host the event in 2025, which went to Tokyo. The Kenyan capital previously staged the World U18 Championships in 2017 and the World U20 Championships in 2021.
Events will take place at Kasarani Stadium, which is being renovated ahead of hosting matches at the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations.
“Nairobi presented a compelling and emotional bid, and taking the World Athletics Championships to Africa for the first time will be historic,” said World Athletics President Sebastian Coe.
“Kenya is one of the great athletics nations. The sport is woven into the fabric of the country.”
Munich will host the 2031 event at the Olympic Stadium, bringing the championships back to Germany for the first time since Berlin in 2009.
“Germany has proved time and again that it is an outstanding and dependable host for major athletics events,” Coe said.
Both events will take place in the month of September, in line with the 2027 championships in Beijing.
(Reporting by Tommy Lund in Gdansk, editing by Pritha Sarkar)
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