NAIROBI, Feb. 11 (Xinhua) -- Kenya teams will miss next week's inaugural regional Africa Zone Five volleyball club championship in Kigali, Rwanda.
Only five countries, out of 12, have confirmed the participation in the tournament. They are Rwanda, Burundi, Uganda, Ethiopia and Tanzania. Kenya, Egypt, Sudan, South Sudan, Eritrea, Djibouti and Somalia will skip the tournament.
"It is true we have no Kenyan team in the final line-up. There are only 12 teams from the five countries and that shows that we have a formidable competition despite it being the first time we are hosting it," said Rwanda's head coach Paul Bitok on Monday in Nairobi.
African Volleyball Confederation (CAVB) press officer Tarek Al-Adwar said that 20 clubs from 12 countries had been invited for the tournament, which runs from Feb. 19-24 in the Rwandese capital.
"We invited 20 teams to participate at the upcoming Zone 5 Club Championship, which will be played at Amahoro Stadium in Kigali, Rwanda," said Al-Adwar on Monday. "But only 12 have confirmed."
Most of the teams will be using the competition as part of their preparations ahead of the main Africa Club Championships, which will be held in Cairo, Egypt in April, and the winner will qualify for the World Club Championships.
