Kenya Lionesses miss out on direct Olympics qualification after losing to South Africa at Africa Sevens

Kenya Lionesses missed out on an automatic ticket to the Paris 2024 Olympics following a 12-7 loss to South Africa in the cup final at the Africa Sevens in Tunisia on Sunday.

Dennis Mwanja’s charges had enjoyed a flawless run to the final but met their waterloo in the form South Africa.

Nadine Roos scored the fisrt try for South Africa to hand her side a 5-0 lead which they held on until halftime.

Sharon Auma then gave Kenya hope when she beat the South Africa defence with a good run to score what turned out to be Kenya’s only try and it was converted by Grace Okulu to see them go ahead 7-0.

With the game staying tight, Maria Thshiremba had the final say as she beat her markers to score a try for South Africa which Roos converted for the 12-7.

It was a disappointing end for Kenya who had hoped to secure Olympics qualification for a second straight time and even though they still have a chance, it will be more difficult.

The Lionesses will now hope to secure their ticket via the grueling 2024 Final Olympic Qualification Tournament. Finishing second will has also seen them qualify for the 2024 Challenger Series as South Africa secured a place in the World Sevens Series.

Kenya started brilliantly, beating Zambia 27-0, Ghana 41-0 and Madagascar 20-17 on Saturday before thrashing Ugandans 27-0 in the semi-final.