Samuel Muturi made history by becoming the first Kenyan canoe slalom paddler to make a semifinal of an international event.
Samuel, 27, grew up in a humble background by River Tana county where as a child, he would watch rafters float downstream.
The Kenyan rafter together with his childhood friends would make daily trips to fetch water and play in the river.
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“We grew up with the river. We would wash our clothes by the river, fetch our cooking water from the river. My mum would wash clothes by the river, as I dived and swam with other boys in the river,” Muturi told Olympics.com.
When Muturi turned 18 he got a chance to work as a freelance cameraman and photographer, capturing moments of guests paddling down the river and would sell to clients.
“When I started as a photographer, sometimes as mum was fetching water, she would see me passing by on kayaks and she was very proud of me. But when I started paddling on the craft, those things that she wasn’t quite familiar with, she was a bit worried and always reminded me to be careful,” he noted
The paddler has had the chance to represent Kenya including 2019 when he debuted during the world championships in La Seu d’Urgell in Spain.
Muturi has hit various landmarks in his career by becoming the first ever Kenyan paddler to reach the semi-final at the World Championships.
The Kenyan paddler also noted that the sport is expensive citing lack of the right equipment to participate .
“I don’t have the right equipment or cannot get the good kayaks, which are expensive. The same slalom equipment I found when I joined the club in 2007 are the same ones we are still using to train and compete locally.
"But when I go outside Kenya, I find new high-speed kayaks and canoes and well-marked rivers.
“Competing outside always helps me raise my levels. When I am training here, I can never set up more than five gates, as it’s costly to acquire the poles and there are also access issues. Most parts of the river have been taken up by private users who farm on the land by the river,” he highlighted.
The 27-year-old paddler is currently focusing on qualifying for the 2024 Olympics where he would be the first Kenyan paddler to participate in the Olympics.
Muturi also trains local youngsters around his home in Sagana, as he hopes it will help grow the numbers of people taking up the water sport and get canoe slalom on the Kenyan Olympic agenda.
“It will also create more interest. The kids I coach will say, ‘look this is our coach and he has done it,’... If they see someone doing big stuff in the sport and going to the Olympics, they will also be interested just like how running became popular because of their successes at the Olympics,” Muturi Noted.
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