Ugandan journalists arrive, the Rio Games can begin

Norman Katende and Mark Namanya

When Vision Group journalist Norman Katende landed in Rio de Janerio on Tuesday, he became the first Uganda Sports Press (USPA) journalist to cover three Olympic Games.

This is the second Olympics to have at least four accredited Ugandan journalists - a far cry from the earlier games with just single representatives.

Cricketers would describe Katende as the perfect all-rounder – reporting on several disciplines in sport itself, plus general news and photography.

In fact, his top award, the Mohamed Amin Photographic Award, a category under the annual CNN MultiChoice African Journalist Awards 2011, came from his photo-coverage of the July 11, 2010 Kampala bombing.

Added to this, his wide network in the International Olympics Committee and IAAF, the international athletics body, has ensured he made the trips enroute a new Ugandan Olympics coverage record.

Myths abound in sports as in many other aspects of life. Few journalists have been lucky to cover a medal winning Ugandan team - Katende is one of them.  After a “false” start in Beijing 2008, Katende followed it up in 2012, by “winning gold” through Stephen Kiprotich.

Unlike today when the Olympic story unfolds as it happens on our TVs, social media and phones, a few Olympics back, the Ugandan journalist at the Games was literally the country's ears and eyes.

The Olympics offers the journalists a rare opportunity to practice at the highest level, featuring on international radio, TV and newspapers on top of rubbing shoulders with the very best in the world of sport.

In the earlier years, Uganda often returned empty handed, but the gold level coverage of the games by the likes of David Sseppuuya and Kenneth Matovu (RIP) more than made up for the lack of medals.

The trailblazer in Olympic coverage was Hillary Nsambu, who benefited from the Cold War politics that affected the Olympics in the 70s and 80s.

Uganda Times Sports Editor Freddie Ssekitto wrote a critical article calling for an African boycott of the 1980 Moscow Games after the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan.

The Russians accused him of being a CIA agent and responded by cancelling his visa days to the games. Ssekitto was summoned by his editor Ben Bella Ilakut, and told to unpack. Nsambu was then sent to cover the games where John ‘The Beast’ Mugabi grabbed silver.

Ssekitto however got his chance four years later in the land of the CIA, Los Angeles 1984.

“It was marvellous and we were fortunate to meet Muhamad Ali,” said Ssekitto.

“I was also privileged to cover it with an immensely talented and prolific writer and colleague , Fred Ssekabembe (RIP).”

Nsambu was back for his second coverage as Uganda traveled to Seoul in 1988, David Sseppuuya went to Barcelona in 1992 before Wangwe “Lucky” Mulakha took centre stage, in 1996. It was Mulakha who informed Ugandans that quarter miler Davis Kamoga had won bronze in a new national record.

James Lwanga covered the Athens Games in 2000, Kenneth Matovu was in Sydney 2004, before this writer and Norman Katende went to Beijing in 2008. We were joined for a short spell by Mark Ssali and James Mayanja.

The numbers grew in 2012 London, with the team including Mark Namanya, Norman Katende and Ahmed Hussein.

Ugandan journalists however have a long way to go to match 70+-year-olds, Italian sports journalist Giuliano Bevilacqua and Switzerland's Peter Frei. They are at 25 and 24 Olympic Games covered respectively.

Both men were honoured in Rio on Monday by the International Sports Press Association (AIPS)  for their lifelong contributions to sports journalism.

The first games Frei covered were in Sapporo, Japan, in the winter of 1972. 

Games	Gold	Silver	Bronze	Ugandan Journalists
1956 Melbourne	0	0	0
1960 Rome	0	0	0
1964 Tokyo	0	0	0
1968 Mexico City	0	1	1
1972 Munich	1	1	0
1976 Montreal	did not participate
1980 Moscow	0	1	0	Hillary Nsambu
1984 Los Angeles	0	0	0	Freddie Ssekitto, Fred Ssekambebe
1988 Seoul	0	0	0	Hilary Nsambu
1992 Barcelona	0	0	0	David Ssepuuya
1996 Atlanta	0	0	1	Wangwe Mulakha
2000 Sydney	0	0	0	Kenneth Matovu
2004 Athens	0	0	0	James Lwanga
2008 Beijing	0	0	0	Louis Jadwong Norman Katende
2012 London	1	0	0	Louis Jadwong Norman Katende Ahmed Hussein Mark Namanya
2016 Rio				Sande Bashaija Norman Katende Mark Namanya James Bakama Aisha Nassanga