Benjamin Ayimba Dies: Former Kenya Sevens coach Benjamin Ayimba has died. Ayimba died while undergoing treatment for cerebra malaria. His death comes barely days after his family made an update on his health.
Ayimba was admitted at the Kenyatta National Hospital (KNH) Private Wing. At the time the family gave an update on his health on May 10, Ayimba had regained consciousness. His limbs were also said to be responsive.
He was moved to Kenyatta from Avenue Hospital where he left a bill of Sh. 1.6 million out of a total bill of Sh. 3.6 million. The bill at Kenyatta escalated quickly to Sh. 2.1 million, but the family said that it had paid a deposit of Sh. 800,000. Among those who’ve contributed to the bill include President Uhuru Kenyatta who donated Sh. 1 million.
Ayimba had been in and out of hospital since January 2021. His condition deteriorated in April this year and he was admitted at the High Dependency Unit at a Nairobi Hospital.
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Ayimba will be remembered for masterminding Shujaa’s historic triumph at the 2016 Singapore Sevens tournament-Kenya’s first-ever title at the World Sevens Series. he was an accomplished coach of both the Sevens team and the 15s. Benjamin Ayimba was considered one of the finest rugby coaches to have emerged from Kenya.
Ayimba, 44, completed his studies at Maseno School in 1994 and joined Impala Saracens the year after. He captained Impala to two championships, the Kenya Cup in 2000 and the Enterprise Cup in 2001. He also steered Impala to three National Sevens Circuit titles in 1999, 2000 and 2001. Ayimba also played for Nondescripts in 2002 before moving to and Cornish Pirates in England between 2003 and 2005.
He was part of the Kenya Sevens squad that featured in the 2001 and 2005 Rugby World Cup Sevens tournaments in Argentina and Hong Kong respectively. He also played for Kenya at the 1998, 2002 and 2006 Commonwealth Games.