Kenya Basketball Federation has sacked the official following the rare blunder that left the country embarassed.
The official who played the wrong national anthem in Kenya’s Afro Basketball qualifiers has been sacked.
Kenya suffered double blow on Monday after losing FIBA Women’s AfroBasket 2025 qualifiers opener against Uganda and their national anthem wrongly recited.
The Kenya National Basketball Association in a statement on Tuesday, said: “The person responsible for playing the wrong national anthem in the Kenya vs Uganda Game in the FIBA Women’s Afrobasket Qualifiers, has been fired and a report written to FIBA.”
As the Lionesses lined up before the clash, the wrong recorded audio for the Kenyan national anthem was played for about 19 seconds. The audio was corrected after a short pause, then “Amkeni Ndugu Zetu” was played followed by an ovation from the crowd as the players applauded in unison.
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Kisoi advised the teams and players that will be willing to participate to ensure they register by the close of business today, April 30.
The Lionesses have disappointed in their opening two matches. After losing 78-56 to Uganda, the George Mayienga-tutored side came up short against South Sudan, following a 86-69 loss on Tuesday.
The team will hope to bounce back to winning ways on Wednesday, when they play Burundi, before winding up their preliminary matches on Friday against hosts Egypt. It is not the first time to experience an anthem blunder.
During the 2024 Paris Olympic Games, a wrong national anthem was played for South Sudan ahead of their opening men’s basketball game against Caribbean Island side Puerto Rico.
