Kenyan vet lands major upset at darts championship

Full-time Kenyan vet, David Munyua, said he could not “feel his hands” as he nailed the winning double in his shock victory over world number 18 Mike de Decker at the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) World Championship in England, according to a report from the BBC on December 18th.

Making his first trip outside of Africa to compete at London’s Alexandra Palace, Munyua completed an outstanding comeback to beat Belgian de Decker – a more than capable opponent who won the World Grand Prix in October 2024.

Marking the first time a Kenyan player had appeared at the tournament, Munyua’s World Championship debut seemed to be heading for defeat as he narrowly lost the first two sets.

However, the vet, who qualified via the African Darts Group Qualifier, began a famous comeback as he levelled the match over the next two legs.

Speaking to BBC radio 5 live after the win, he said : “It’s going crazy back in my country – everybody is like ‘we did it’. It’s a great feeling.” He added that he hopes he can be an “example” to the “great players” coming through East Africa.

The drama was not constrained to the dartboard, as the notorious “Ally Pally wasp” landed on his face halfway through proceedings. The wasp has been a regular visitor to this year’s World Championship, appearing in Nitin Kumar’s win over Richard Veenstra and Martin Lukeman’s matchup with Max Hopp.

However, the airborne critter did not distract the day-time vet from the task at hand. He explained: “Being a veterinarian in my country and also a darts player, there are so many challenges you need to face to combine both.”

“During the day, I’m dealing with my animals, but at night, I’m playing darts. I’m on call a lot of the time, so I can be throwing darts and then get a call.”

Other Africans are also displaying the continent’s sporting prowess on the world stage. It was reported on October 1st that Algeria’s Abdelhadi Boudra claimed a 5000m silver medal at the Para-athletics World Championships in New Delhi. Similarly, the Moroccan football team won the 2025 FIFA Arab Cup on December 18th, defeating Jordan 3-2 in the final.

BBC, Maghrebi.org