Top scorer Sharon ‘Chumba’ Chepchumba says it will be a “big dream” if Kenya can become the first African team to reach the second round of the Women’s Volleyball World Championship.
Chepchumba was delighted after her teammates improved their chances by beating Cameroon 3-0 in Arnhem on Tuesday.
Victory in one of their last two group matches should be enough to secure Kenyan history.
“It will be a big dream for some of us so we have to push harder to qualify which would be a dream come true,” she told BBC Sport Africa.
Kenya will take on favorites and current Volleyball Nations League champions Italy on Thursday before meeting Puerto Rico, a match the East Africans are targeting on Saturday.
The team’s win over Cameroon, with whom Kenya have traded continental titles over the years, leaves coach Luizomar de Moura’s side fourth in their six-team group, with the top four qualifying for the quarter-finals.
“I believe in my teammates and the effort they put in [against Cameroon] was magic,” Chepchumba said after the game.
“I’m really proud of my teammates because what we discussed and agreed is what they delivered.”
Kenya and Cameroon are fierce African rivals – having traded continental titles for many years – Chepchumba saying victory meant even more because it came against the team that beat them in the last three championship finals Africans.
“I don’t like it when Cameroon beat us so I just had to put in the effort and make sure we earned and got the respects,” she said.
“We trained hard for this so I didn’t want to lose this game because it will determine so many things in my life and those of my teammates.”
Kenya’s win was vindication for Brazilian De Moura, who returned to take charge in a project backed by world volleyball governing body FIVB.
“The win means more than the three points in the pool,” said de Moura.
“It also gives Kenya the chance to move up the FIVB Rankings. At the African Championships, Cameroon beat Kenya and overtook us in the rankings, so this victory shows that we can be the best in Africa and compete at a high level.”
Cameroonian regret
For Cameroon, Tuesday night’s defeat was bitterly disappointing given that they are the top-ranked team and they hoped to give themselves a chance to take the next step on the world stage.
“It’s always difficult to lose a game, especially when you know you can win it, so it’s really hard to take,” Cameroon’s Emelda Piatta Zissi told the BBC.
“I think we lost our focus and [made] lots of mistakes. It was one of the games we were trying to focus on to win and we lost it.”
Cameroon also have two matches to play, against Puerto Rico and Belgium, with Piatta saying the team will need to regain a positive mindset.
“It’s not over – we have to forget this game and think about the next one. As a team we always win together and lose together, so we will try to fix what happened and fix it for the next one. match.”
The body language at the end made it clear which team will take the most confidence in their next outing – as Kenya danced onto the pitch in celebration, while Cameroon walked away looking deflated.
