Man Jose Kayima
The World Cup trophy arrived in Kenya on Thursday for a two day tour to the East Africa country.
Kenya’s Cabinet Secretary (CS) for Sports, Amina Mohamed, led government officials, including Tourism and Industrialisation CSs Najib Balala and Betty Maina respectively, in receiving the trophy at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport.
The 18 carat golden trophy was accompanied by former Barcelona and Chelsea defender Juliano Belleti accompanied the trophy.
Belleti won the trophy with Brazil during the 2002 World Cup that was hosted in Korea and Japan.
The trophy was transported to State House, Nairobi where only the Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta had a chance to lift it.
Only the sitting President or a member of a World Cup winning squad is allowed to hold one of the most expensive trophies in Sporting history.
It’s valued at $20 million and stands at 36.5 centimetres (14.4 in) tall and is made of 6.175 kilograms (13.61 lb) of 18 carat (75%) gold, worth approximately US$161,000 in 2018, with a base 13 centimetres (5.1 in) in diameter containing two layers of malachite.
This year’s World Cup is scheduled for November, 21st to December 18th in Qatar.
