Kenya will host the 2029 World Athletics Championships after Nairobi secured the rights to stage athletics’ biggest global competition.
The decision makes Kenya the first African country to host the championships since their inaugural edition was held in Helsinki in 1983.
World Athletics confirmed Nairobi’s selection following its Council meeting in Budapest on Tuesday, September 15, ending Africa’s long wait to welcome the event.
Nairobi defeated competing bids from London and Rome, while Munich was awarded the 2031 championships at the same Council meeting.
The 2029 competition will take place at Kasarani Stadium, which is undergoing extensive renovation ahead of the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations.
Kenya will co-host that football tournament alongside Uganda and Tanzania before welcoming the world’s leading athletes two years later.
The successful bid represents a major breakthrough for a country whose athletes have shaped middle-distance and long-distance running for several generations.
World Athletics president Sebastian Coe said Kenya had satisfied the required hosting conditions while demonstrating enormous enthusiasm for the championships.
Research commissioned by the governing body reportedly identified Kenya as the country with the strongest passion for athletics worldwide.
Coe has repeatedly expressed his desire to take the championships to Africa, the only inhabited continent yet to stage the competition.
That ambition will finally be realised in Nairobi, bringing the sport’s premier championship closer to some of its most successful athletes and supporters.
Kenya’s successful bid was supported by the national government, with President William Ruto leading the country’s presentation to World Athletics in August.
The country entered the race with considerable hosting experience after Nairobi staged the World Under-18 Championships in 2017 and World Under-20 Championships in 2021.
Both competitions attracted impressive crowds at Kasarani and strengthened Kenya’s argument that it could successfully deliver the senior global championship.
However, the 2029 event will demand greater investment in transport, accommodation, security, training facilities and the overall spectator experience.
Renovations at Kasarani will serve two major assignments, beginning with AFCON 2027 before attention turns towards the athletics championships.
Kenya’s selection also strengthens East Africa’s growing position as a destination for major international competitions and sports infrastructure investment.
Uganda, Kenya and Tanzania are already preparing stadiums, training grounds and supporting infrastructure for the first three-country AFCON in history.
The World Athletics Championships will now extend that regional spotlight beyond 2027 while testing Kenya’s ability to maintain its upgraded facilities.
The championships are expected to be staged in September 2029, following the 2027 edition scheduled for Beijing, China.
Munich will then welcome the event in 2031, returning the championships to Germany for the first time since Berlin hosted in 2009.