Kenya's swimmers came up short in their latest heats at the Youth Olympic Games in Dakar, Senegal, with Jeremy Rieck, Macrine Kalombo and Neo Olengo all missing places in the finals of their 100m events, while judoka Rael Kuloba's campaign ended in the repechage.

The results, reported by The Standard on Wednesday, came in the same week the Rising Lionesses delivered the country's first gold of the Games in rugby sevens, a reminder of how uneven Team Kenya's fortunes have been on the West African coast.

Rieck unable to repeat opening-day heroics

Rieck made headlines on the opening day by reaching the final of the men's 100m butterfly, where he finished sixth in a personal best of 55.15 seconds, according to K24 Digital. He could not find the same form in the 100m backstroke, clocking 59.15 seconds in heat four, a time that was not enough to take him through.

The young swimmer still has two more chances, in the 50m butterfly and the 50m backstroke.

In the women's 100m breaststroke, Kalombo touched in 1:23.33 in heat two and also failed to progress. She admitted her body let her down. "I had low energy, so it didn't go as planned but I'm hoping for the best in my next races," she told The Standard.

She now turns to the 200m individual medley and the 50m breaststroke.

Olengo, racing in the men's 100m breaststroke, was likewise eliminated in the heats. He returns for the 50m freestyle and the 50m breaststroke. Isabelle Mwangi, the fourth member of the swimming squad, is yet to race and is entered in the 50m freestyle and the 200m freestyle, which is set for Friday.

Kuloba's run ends in repechage

On the judo mat, Kuloba, competing in the new 52kg category, lost her round of 16 bout to Viktoria Grigoryan and dropped into the repechage. She led Boubacar Ousamane of Cote d'Ivoire 1-0 in the second repechage round but was beaten, bringing her Games to an end.

Her coach, Johnson Kirimo, praised her effort and the progress she has made, according to the report.

Where Kenya's hopes now lie

  • Rugby sevens: the Rising Lionesses beat Australia in sudden death to win Kenya's first Youth Olympic gold.
  • Baseball5: Kenya's mixed team went through the group stage unbeaten, beating France, Mexico and Syria, to reach the semi-finals, K24 Digital reported. Coach Joel Wangicho said the side was focused on the knockout rounds and its gold medal ambition.
  • Swimming: all four swimmers still have races left before the pool programme closes.

Team Kenya travelled to Dakar from an Olympic Solidarity training camp in Tunisia. The Youth Olympic Games, the first Olympic event ever staged in Africa, bring together athletes aged between 15 and 18.

Photos: The Standard/NOC-K (Rael Kuloba); K24 Digital/IOC (Jeremy Rieck). Thumbnail design: HAMASTA MEDIA.