Considered one of the most accomplished basketball player from Kenya, Peter Kiganya has literally eaten, lived and breathed the game.
Player, mentor, coach, Kiganya’s story possesses the tone of an underdog who later rose to earn international recognition as the “African Lion” partly due to a phase in his career where he kept dreadlocks but also with his mastery of basketball and his drive to paint a different picture of the continent, Africa and his country, Kenya to the USA and the rest of the world.
“Being part of the game gave me a clear sense of an unwritten responsibility to always represent my family, country and myself in the best light possible,” said Kiganya.
He was born 47 years ago and raised by a single mother Leah Wanjiku Kinyua, who was originally from Mwiki but earned a living in Nairobi by doing odd jobs to sustain her small family. That household included a daughter, Jane, who was 10 years older than Kiganya.
“My mum has been my mother and father. My childhood was extraordinary because to date I don’t understand how she managed to provide and put my sister and I, through school because she earned so little from the different odd jobs she did. She is my hero,” said Kiganya.
Growing up in the cosmopolitan city of Nairobi was an advantage for Kiganya who attended Muguga Green Primary School gaining great exposure to different cultures.
In 1987, young Kiganya joined Eastleigh Boys High School not knowing that he would join a sport that would forever change his life.
His teacher at the time, a Mr. Mwanyika, identified his impressive height — six feet six inches standing on his sock — which could be resourceful in playing basketball and immediately recruited him to the school team.
“I got into basketball by default. My teacher gave me an ultimatum of playing the game or getting punished, leaving me no choice. I wasn’t good at the game but I wanted to excel, always asking how I can get better,” said Kiganya.
The doors of destiny opened up for him two years after high school in 1992 when he played the role of a basketball player for a local movie dubbed “The Air Up There” that gave him a first trip abroad.
He did a duty tour of the city of Los Angeles in the US which would later be his home for a long time.
At the same time he had signed up for Kenya Ports Authority (KPA) men’s basketball team which he returned to after his movie stint.
He was called up to the Kenya team in 1993 as a power forward.
But it is while at KPA that he got discovered by an American coach who was stationed at Kenya Christian Industrial Training Institute (KCITI) college.
The American coach, Tony Mauldin, was scouting players from different clubs to join his team and Kiganya happened to be among the lucky few.
“I remember him encouraging us to join his team which came with a lot of benefits like getting world class training and even benefiting from scholarships to not only pursue our college education but also get to experience the power that basketball has as a sport in America,” said Kiganya.
In 1997, Kiganya qualified for a basketball scholarship four months after joining the KCITI basketball team and he made his move to the United States of America.
He joined Abilene Christian College to pursue a bachelor’s degree.
“There are some things that you foresee but others hit you as a good surprise. I knew getting that scholarship was the key to changing my life and my family’s life forever and so I used that chance like it would never come again,” said Kiganya.
Kiganya made it his business to sharpen his offensive and defensive game as he helped power Abilene Christian College to win the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division Two.
For someone who had tried a hand in other activities such as the school choir, traditional dance and even being a first Aid Recruit for the St John’s school Ambulance team, basketball seemed to be his calling.
After his graduation in 2002, Kiganya was drafted by the Espanol De Talca in Chile.
He repaid their faith in him and was inevitably voted Best Import Player due to his deadly 3 points shots.
His exploits were noticed across borders and he moved to play for Club Welcome in Uruguay in 2004 on a better deal.
In his illustrious career as a player Kiganya won several championships in different countries, with Liceo Mixto in Chile, Paraguay with Sol de America and with the Regatas in Peru before he started his transition from player to coach.
His growing reputation earned him a guest player ticket for APR during the Rwanda Annual Genocide Tournament.
In 2005, he came back to Kenya and played for the Sprite Stormers.
“The best tournaments were those that we won. I remember every one of them including winning the league in Kenya with KPA and Co-operative Bank,” said Kiganya.
Kiganya names Kenyan player Isaac Omolle and Scottie Pippen of the US as his role models.
During his time as a player abroad, Kiganya formed an NGO basketball programme named Friends of Basketball Kenya (FOBK) where he mentored and coached the youth in residential areas like Kimathi Estate in Nairobi.
“I had to find a platform that I could use to inspire young people and help them dream big. And the organisation presented exactly that for me as a coach in training but also for the young people who needed the necessary interaction with a professional,” said Kiganya.
Kiganya took his final bow as a basketball player in 2013 after an incredible 21 years in the game. He says, every good player knows when to retire and take up a different role that will continue supporting the game.
Since he had already started practicing his role as a coach back in 2012, the transition was easy when he stepped up to coach Kenya in 2014, then went ahead to volunteer at University of Texas.
He guided the varsity side to a championship and promotion.
He was a graduate assistant at Angelo State University in 2015 and 2016, under coaches Chris Beard and Cinco Boone who sharpened his tactical abilities.
With a record high-score 48 points when he was playing for Espanol de Talca, Kiganya earned a spot in the Albine Christian College Hall of Fame in 2016.
“Getting inducted into the hall of fame at Abilene College where my career took off was one of the best moments in my basketball playing days closely followed by the birth of my three children, Leah, Peter and Levi,” said Kiganya.
“However, my lowest moment in basketball was in my senior year of college when I played over half the year with severe Achilles tendinitis. I also experienced heartbreak when I left my daughter when she was just two years old to go for a tournament away from home.”
With years of experience as a player and briefly as a coach, Kiganya took it upon himself to start tours in Kenya where he would teach youth between the ages of 18 and 25 about the game and life skills.
These resulted in the birth of Hope Basketball Tour which is an annual three-day training camp that targets aspiring basketball players and teaching them how to merge skills and athletics ability.
“The Hope Tour came about after receiving numerous requests from different people in Kenya who worked with the youth but lacked things like basketballs, uniforms and coaches who also wanted more coaching lessons. I quickly jumped for the idea because I not only saw it as an opportunity to practise my coaching skills but also give back to the Kenyan community,” said Kiganya.
The tour, which is now in its third year, has seen him travel to different towns in the country including Wote, Yala, Mombasa, Nairobi and recently Thika. The training sessions are organised by some of the local team coaches including Lameck Chege of Thika Pines, who also played with Kiganya at KCITI.
“I had been pushing Kiganya for a long time to start something like the tour, because the Kenyan basketball scene needed someone who’s had international experience, walked in the same shoes as the players here and understands the struggles of a young player,” said Chege.
The tour is just among the many things Kiganya does in between balancing his social and professional life.
He is currently based in the US as a skills developer for the youth.
And trust him, during his free time he enjoys watching basketball games and movies.
“Most of my life revolves around basketball but I always create time for other things to keep my balance and also be in touch with everything else going on around our world,” said Kiganya.
Kiganya says his goal is to change the Kenyan basketball attitude that players in the country can never reach the National Basketball Association (NBA) level and excel internationally, and scout for the untapped talent in the country. Hence, he has dedicated every summer vacation to making trips to Kenya and fully engaging in the Hope Tour.
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