Bernard Otieno is arguably the most successful sports commentator in East and Central Africa based on the incredible milestones that he has reached in his career.
When veteran Swahili sports journalists, the late Mohamed Juma Njuguna and Jack Oyoo Slyvester dominated the airwaves in the late 20th century, Otieno chose an entirely different path.
TeamKenya.co.ke looks at Bernard’s inspiring commentary journey to the FIFA World Cup.
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Otieno got interested in sports commentary at a younger age while playing football and listening to radio commentaries.
His breakthrough came when he landed a job at the national broadcaster Kenya Broadcasting Corporation (KBC), in the 1980s.
It was while presenting the Kenya Sports Diary program that his talent was noticed.
Thanks to his impressive work at KBC, Otieno was offered an opportunity to commentate at the 1989 Cecafa Cup that was staged in the coastal town of Mombasa.
He took the opportunity with both hands and left Kenyan sports fans yearning for more of his commentaries.
During that period, Kenyans were used to Swahili football commentaries and were thus shocked by Otieno’s brilliant mastery of the English language.
After the Cecafa Cup, Bernard was approached to commentate at the 1997 IAAF World Athletics Championships held in the Greek city of Athens.
According to Otieno, who doubles up as a lecturer, he was scared, but managed to master the courage to grace the occasion.
One year later, he secured a deal to commentate at the 1998 FIFA World Cup, in the process becoming the first Kenyan English journalist to achieve that incredible feat.
“In 1998 and 2010, I was asked to commentate on the FIFA World Cup in France and South Africa, respectively. It was mind-blowing.
“I have never had so much information at my disposal. The challenge was how to harness it and tell it to the whole world. That was the best experience I ever had,” he was quoted by Nation.
Otieno went on to commentate at numerous high-profile events, including the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games.
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