Owinyi, Mukula fired up by the Real Stars awards

Uganda’s top badminton player Augustus Owinyi feels fired up for the upcoming All Africa Badminton Challenge in Mauritius and the Botswana International Series after bagging his first Fortebet Real Stars Award.

Having won the men’s singles during the City Tyres East Africa Badminton Challenge last month, Owinyi was one of three outstanding sportsmen awarded for their hard work, alongside rally driver Mike Mukula Jr and footballer Allan Okello at the Lazo Restaurant in Kololo on Tuesday.

Mukula won the 2024 Africa Rally Championship 2 (ARC 2) during the Mountain Gorilla Rally in Rwanda, while Okello was recognised for his outstanding display during the AFCON qualifiers with the Cranes against South Sudan, where he made two assists. He was also outstanding for Vipers in the Uganda Premier League, with three assists.

Kyaggwe's chairman Stephen Kinaalwa (left), coach David Katono, team CEO/secretary Greg Kikomeko pose with their Lifetime Achievement Awards. Photo by Michael Nsubuga

“This is my first award of this kind and it is a big motivation. It encourages me to work hard to ensure I meet my goals in this sport. This is one of the awards I have been working hard to get and so it feels good to have received it today,” Owiny said.

Mukula was also elated to have won the African championship, becoming the second Ugandan to do so after Yasin Nasser, who had won it before.

“The rally was very fast and we pushed ourselves to the limit, but we learnt a lot. All in all, it was a successful event, and we look forward to further support from our sponsors, KCB Bank. We are happy for all the support and blessings we received from all the Ugandans, and we are happy to have gotten that result,” Mukula said.

“We are very happy to represent Uganda in all these events and we are very proud. I want to thank my team, who all played a part in our victory. We are strong but now we are motivated to perform even better,” he added.

For steering the Kyaggwe Masaza team to their first final, the team’s leadership, including coach David Katono, team CEO/secretary Greg Kikomeko, chairman Stephen Kinaalwa, and Kyaggwe County head Ssekiboobo Vincent Matovu, received Lifetime Achievement Awards from the Real Stars Awards CEO Isac Mukasa. Mukasa said the four had worked hard and persevered to ensure the Kyaggwe County team made their first final after trying in vain for the last five years.

The awards also left all of them vowing to ensure Kyaggwe wins this year’s championship, where they are pitted against the Buddu County team in the November 2 final. “We have worked very hard to ensure the ‘Bukunja warriors’ reach where they are, and we are determined to win our first trophy on Saturday. We are taking it home,” Katono promised. “I thank the top management for backing me and the media for their support,” he added.

Kikomeko dedicated his award to the former Ssekiboobo, the late Alex Benjamin Kigongo Kikonyogo, who he said encouraged him to organize the county team. He said they laid a strategic plan that ensured they employed homegrown coaches and at least 80% of homegrown players, strategies that he says have helped them get to where they are. “As the CEO, I have been pondering on what to do and consulting winners on what they do to win and realized that they engage in early preparations. The fans have been very supportive, and I’m confident we are winning it this time,” Kikomeko vowed.