Sportswashing and the Antecedents of Sports Diplomacy in Kenya, 1920- 1964

Abstract

Despite a growing body of literature on sports diplomacy in Kenya, the colonial antecedents of diplomacy through sports in the country are largely unexplored. This article delved into the colonial past to understand how the state employed sportwashing as a form of public diplomacy within Kenya and in enhancing its image globally amidst racial injustices against Africans. The article explores the place of sports in epistemic violence, Cold War politics, and anti-Mau Mau propaganda. The author examined primary and secondary sources to understand the practices of sportwashing in Kenya and around the world between 1920 and 1964.