Remarks By Amb. (Dr.) Amina Mohamed, Cabinet Secretary For Sports, Culture And Heritage During The East African Superbike Championships Race 1, 2021 At The Whistling Morans, Athi River
Mr Zach Kinuthia, Chief Administrative Secretary, Ministry of Sports, Culture and Heritage
Joe R. Okudo, Principal Secretary, State Department for Sports
Mr Phineas Kimathi, CEO, FIA/WRC Safari Rally Kenya
Myke Rabar, CEO, Homeboys Entertainment Limited and CEO of the World Under-20 Championships and co-organiser of this event
Mr Jim Kahumbura, Event Director FIA/WRC Safari Rally Kenya,
Dr David Karuri, Chairperson, The Superbike Association and Deputy Director, Medical, FIA/WRC Safari Rally Kenya
Esteemed Super Bikers,
Invited Guests,
Ladies and Gentlemen
I am delighted to join you this afternoon for this 2021 season’s inaugural race of the East African Superbike Championship. I am indeed eager to watch this opening season’s action live on location.
Motorcycling sport has grown exponentially with a rising and passionate fan base around the world. As one of those rising fans, I have picked up a few exciting facts about the Superbike Racing Action:
That the average Superbike can reach an extraordinary 190 mph. The 749cc Kawasaki ZX 7RR can reach upto 200mph. That’s about the same speed as the Ferrari F50, which costs more than £300,000 but has a meaty 4.7litre, 12 cylinder engine. The level of skill and focus required to safely manoeuvre at this speed is extraordinary.
The shortest track in the World Superbike schedule is the Laguna Seca Raceway in California, at 2¼ miles. The longest is the Curcuito van Drenthe B.V. in Holland, at just over 3¼ miles.
As of 18th October 2020, Ducati had won the World Superbike Manufacturer’s Championship 17 times, Kawasaki, 6 times, including the 2020 Title, while the Honda has won it 4 times.
The history of motorcycling is largely paralleled and often coincided with the development of automobile sports and has been an evolving sport since the 19th century spreading from Europe to other continents, including Africa.
Over the last few decades, we have witnessed a surge in motorcycle prevalence in African urban cities as an alternative form of transport. While offering certain transport advantages in the form of easy manoeuvrability, ability to travel on poor roads, and demand responsiveness, commercial motorcycle (boda boda) service growth has also led to an increase in road accidents and traffic management problems.
This phenomenon, which is closely tied to the evolution of our economies must inform the Ministry’s engagement and support of related sports with the view of using sport to inspire behaviour change towards road safety.