PARIS 2014: Brazil prove too strong for Kenya as Malkia Strikers start Olympics campaign with a loss

Kenya getting the better of Brazil in women’s volleyball continues to be an unconquered summit for the Malkia Strikers, as the record African champions lost 3-0 to the South Americans in their opening match of the 2024 Paris Olympic Games on Monday at the South Paris Arena 6.

The Malkia Strikers, who are in Group B with the South Americans, Japan, and Poland, had also lost to the Brazilians by the same scoreline on the two previous occasions they played against each other at the Olympic Games: Tokyo 2020 and Athens 2004.

Kenya, coached by Japheth Munala, matched the Tokyo 2020 silver medalists in the opening phases of the first set. Kenya initiated the first point and maintained their lead, allowing the Brazilians to catch up and tie the score at 3-3. After that, the defiance of the Malkia Strikers was no match for the two-time Olympic champions, who started pulling away on the scoreboard and extending their lead on the way to winning the first set 25-14.

The second set started similarly to the first set, with Kenya scoring two points before the Brazilians lit the scoreboard. However, Kenya had no response when the Brazilians started fighting back, first by levelling the score and then progressively extending their lead as the Malkia Strikers stagnated on the scoreboard. The Brazilians, one of the tournament’s gold medal favourites, ended up winning that set 25-13.

Going into these Olympic Games, the Malkia Strikers had set modest targets for themselves. These included winning a set, winning a match, and scoring double figures in each set.

Heading into the third set while trailing their formidable opponents 2-0, achieving the first two of those three targets on their first day of competition in Paris became a herculean task.

Any heroics by the Malkia Strikers will have to wait until they meet Japan and Poland in their subsequent Group B games.

Before Paris 2024, Malkia Strikers had played Brazil seven times, and in all those matches, they lost without winning a single set.

The third set lacked that optimistic start from the Malkia Strikers, as they went behind from the onset, and the only time they were level on scores with the Brazilians was after they scored their first point.

After that, Kenya’s appearances on the scoreboard became few and far apart, as the Brazilians scored an average of three points before Kenya replied.

Perhaps eager to kill the game early and reduce the turnaround time to their next match, Brazil increased its oppression of the Malkia Strikers, racing to a 10-point lead much faster than they did in the first two sets.

In the third set, Kenya trailed by 10 points before they could get their points tally to two digits, unlike in the first two sets.

That realisation of trailing 16–6 must have woken Malkia Strikers up, albeit temporarily. Kenya then fought hard to match the Brazilians point-for-point. However, their resistance only lasted long enough to bring the score to 20-10. After that, Brazil dominated the remaining phase of the match, scoring five points to Kenya’s two to win the set 25-12. As a result, Brazil won the match 3-0.

Kenya now hopes for redemption in their next two matches against Poland on July 31 and Japan on August 3. Kenya has not emerged victorious against Japan and Poland in their ten encounters, yet optimism endures.