Kenya’s rugby fraternity have expressed their emotional reactions after shocking news of the death of one of their own, Impala Saracens RFC fullback Richard Sidindi Akoth who drowned while swimming at Impala club Monday morning during a routine exercise.
Details on the player’s remain sketchy. On Saturday, Sidindi played during the Impala match against Homeboyz at the same venue.
“It appears that there was some swimming pool incident where Sidindi was alone but we are still gathering information on what really happened,” said Impala Saracens Director of Rugby, Fred Ollows, who was at Kilimani Police Station to record a statement.
“We shall definitely communicate when we get full details,” said Ollows, who was at the Police Station with first responders to the incident to record statements.
According to sources close to the deceased, Otieno was a prolific swimmer and it is believed that he might have pulled a muscle cramp while under water, leading to his death.
A post mortem is expected to be conducted on the body to determine the exact cause of his death. Otieno is a former student of St. Mary’s Yala and attended Maseno University.
Sidindi last featured for Impala Saracens last weekend with the second team that lost to Homeboyz 18-11 in the Eric Shirley Shield match.
“Sidindi came off the bench in second half and played for 30 minutes,” said Impala Saracens head coach Frank Ndong.
“We are trying to find out what really happened since he was a good swimmer,” said Ndong.
Sidindi, who has also played for Kenya Shujaa at Safari Sevens, was an Information Technology specialist with deep passion as a rugby player and great personality.
Following his demise, a number of rugby fans and clubs have taken to social media to pay tribute to the departed star.