By Ahmad Muto
British sports commentator Rob Walker is set to return to Uganda in September.
The witty, high-octane sports character, who was in the country in early February on a two-week sports tour following an invitation by the Uganda Tourism Board, left impressed beyond his expectations.
While here, he met with, among others, tourism entrepreneur Amos Wekesa, who interested him in a marathon dubbed the Rwenzori Marathon set for September 2, 2023 that will see him return.
The marathon had its inaugural edition in 2022 on the foot of Mountain Rwenzori in Kasese with the goal of showcasing the mountain, and championing conservation and tourism.
On his Twitter, Walker noted that sports tourism will be taking another step forward.
“@wekesa_amos @ExploreUganda Delighted to promote the brilliant new marathon in Sept. Sports tourism takes another step forward in Uganda. I thought I was commenting & doing PR! But if required to run, my trainers will be packed! See you there Uganda,” he tweeted.
In February, Walker visited Bwindi Impenetrable Forest, where was thrilled by the gorillas. He made presentations to the youth, shared ideas with sports journalists, took the initiative to start a competition to groom local sports commentators and flew the presidential Mi-17 chopper to Teryet, Kapchorwa to check on the National High Altitude Training facility, where he also met Olympic gold medallist Joshua Cheptegei.
Walker became a darling in Uganda in 2021 during the Tokyo Olympics, where he watched Peruth Chemutai clinch the women’s 3,000 metre steeplechase gold medal, prompting him to quip that Ugandans were going to drown in Nile Special beer in celebration.
That earned him an instant over 5,000 new followers on Twitter and offers of a second wife and cattle.
