The Kenya National Team Harambee Stars began their training in Cairo ahead of their opening match against Algeria which is slated for 23rd June.
Perhaps the only question that Kenyans need to ask themselves is; could it be that Harambee Stars chose the wrong venue for their preparations for the elite tournament?
Why? Because temperature change has a diverse effect on football performance. Hot environmental conditions are associated with reductions in high-speed running and specifically sprint distances, both of which are likely to directly influence the match result.
Paris, France where the Kenyan team had been training in has a cooler temperature as compared to Egypt where the tournament will be held.
Betin moment of the day @OgadaOlunga was on good form in Wednesday's training session. How well do you think he will perform at AFCON?#Tunaweza #BetinNaStars #AFCON2019 #HarambeeStars pic.twitter.com/0fWjf1XJMs
— Football Kenya Federation (@Football_Kenya) June 13, 2019
Average Temperatures by Month in Paris
June: 72 F (22 C) / 55 F (13 C)
July: 75 F (24 C) / 59 F (15 C)
August: 75 F (24 C) / 59 F (15 C)
But Kenya seemed to have ignored that despite the Confederation of African Football (CAF) giving the temperature notification early enough.
Egypt expected to hover between 35 and 38 Celsius (95-100.4 Fahrenheit) over the next month.
Humidity will also range from 40% to 60% resulting in a wet bulb globe temperature — which assesses the effects of heat, humidity, sunlight and wind — of above 32 degrees.
“It is certain that most teams will be aware of this and will train accordingly,” CAF said in a statement.
“At this level, FIFA recommends three-minute rest and refreshing breaks in the 30th and 75th minutes.”
Coolers with crushed ice and drinks, as well as cold, wet towels will be provided for the players and officials.
“It will also be necessary to prepare for any eventuality of emergencies. It will be important to be able to diagnose and treat heat-related illnesses, if they occur, on-site,” CAF added.
Harambee Stars, however, landed in Cairo on Wednesday 19 June where they began their preparations as they will look forward to facing Algeria who conducted their training in Doha, Qatar, and Tanzania who had been training in Egypt (getting used to the environment) since June 10 and Senegal who were in Paris but left a week before the start of the tournament.
The first match will be against Algeria on June 23. Tanzania will be up next on June 27, before Kenya winds up her group stage matches against Senegal on July 1, 2019.