Harambee Starlets, Kenya Lionesses among top teams nominated for top sports award
NAIROBI, Kenya, April 4, 2026 – Kenya’s women national football team Harambee Starlets are among the nominated teams for the 2025 Sports Personality of the Year Awards (SOYA).
The winners will be feted during the 2025 SOYA Awards Gala set for April 10, this year at Uhuru Gardens.
Starlets had a landmark year in 2025, defined by a return to the continental stage and a strong showing in regional competitions.
The team’s defining achievement of the year was securing their spot in the 2026 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (WAFCON), marking their return to the continental tournament for the first time in 10 years, since their debut in 2016.
Under the tutelage of Coach Beldine Odemba, Starlets defeated The Gambia with a aggregate score of 4-1, winning 3-1 at home and 1-0 away.
By qualifying for WAFCON, Stalets have kept their hopes alive for a first-ever FIFA Women’s World Cup appearance in 2027, as the WAFCON semi-finalists earn direct tickets to the global showpiece.
Odemba’s charges were also dominant throughout the 2025 CECAFA tournament held in June in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, where they finished as runners-up, securing the silver medal after a narrow 1-0 loss to the hosts, Tanzania, in the final.
Before the final, Kenya recorded emphatic victories, including a 4-0 win over Uganda and a 4-0 win over South Sudan, showcasing a high-scoring offense led by players like Violet Nanjala and Fasila Adhiambo.
Malkia Stars, Lionesses in the mix
Other nominees in the women category are the national under 20 women’s volleyball team, the Junior Malkia Stars, as well as their rugby 7s counterparts, Kenya Lionesses.
The Junior Malkia Stars shocked hosts Cameroon in the final to win the 2025 CAVB Women’s Under 20 African Nations Championship.
They beat Cameroon 3-1 (26-24, 25-19, 26-28, 25-15) to win their maiden title, completing a sweet revenge as Cameroon had initially beaten them by the same score line in the preliminary stage.
The win in Cameroon secured Kenya a slot at this year’s FIVB Women’s Under 21 World Championship in Santiago, Chile.
The Kenya Lionesses, on the other hand, won the 2025 World Rugby Sevens Challenger Series to qualify for promotion and relegation play-off where they also won.
Victory should have seen Kenya Lionesses qualify for the World Rugby Women’s Sevens series for the first time but World Rugby changed the format.
The Lionesses defeated South Africa 19-15 in the semi-finals during the first leg of the 2025 World Rugby Sevens Challenger Series in Cape Town. The Lionesses went on to win the final beating Argentina 17-12.
The Lionesses and Lady Blitzboks met in the final of the second leg of the 2025 World Rugby Sevens Challenger Series in Cape Town where the Kenyans prevailed in the final 17-0.
Come the decisive promotion and relegation play-off in Los Angeles, the Lionesses and Lady Blitzboks met in the quarter-finals again and the Kenyans triumphed 17-14.
KPA women’s basketball team and the national women hockey teams complete the list of the five nominees for the women teams of the year.
Having romped to glory in the Women’s Premier League, the dockers made a resounding return to the continental scene where they finished sixth out of 12 competitors at the Women’s Basketball Africa League (WBAL) in Egypt.
Coming away from Cairo with a 3-3 record was a good return on investment for a team that had been away from the continental stage.
Meanwhile, Kenya’s hockey queens secured bronze medal at the Africa Cup of Nations, steamrolling over teams that were previously considered the best, such as Egypt, who they beat 4-0.
They beat Nigeria by a single goal in the third-place playoff to wrap up their campaign on a high.
The post Harambee Starlets, Kenya Lionesses among top teams nominated for top sports award appeared first on Capital Sports.