For the last 16 years, Peris has raised the profile of women in rugby.
From fandom, to playing, officiating, education, and now in management, Peris has been a part of all five cogs that chug the rugby engine locally and globally.
She sits on the board of Kenya Rugby as a director on the strength of her potential to spread the rugby gospel and reinforce the gains made by the sport. Last year, Peris was named among 12 inspirational women, dubbed the Unstoppables, a social media campaign to grow the sport on behalf of Rugby Africa, the continental federation.
Two months later, she was unveiled as one of the inaugural members of Rugby Africa’s Refereeing Committee on the strength of her background and contribution to the sport.
"Other than driving the gender agenda, I want to elevate match officials to the regional and global level to improve reffing standards."
After taking interest while pursuing her O-levels in 2005, Peris started playing. She played for Kenya Harlequin, Mwamba, and the national 7s and 15s sides.
Peris started refereeing in 2008 to fill up the free time resulting from few women’s rugby fixtures at the time but made a full-time switch to officiating. In 2013, she became the first Kenyan woman to be accredited as an educator by World Rugby, the global regulator.
“Other than driving the gender agenda, I want to elevate match officials to the regional and global level to improve reffing standards. For the ladies, push for more matches each year to better prepare for the World Cup qualifiers and the World Cup in 2025 and continue to motivate more girls and women to join different roles in sport,” Ms Mukoko-Wanyaga says of her plans with the roles in the two federations.
Brian Wasuna
