The Sunday Mail
GOVERNMENT has availed $270 000 towards Team Zimbabwe’ preparations for the African Union Sports Council Region V Under 20 games.
The Games will run from 4 – 15 December in Bulawayo.
The acting director in the department of sport in the Ministry of Sports, Arts and Culture Tendai Tagara confirmed the development.
“Government has so far disbursed US$270 000,00 for the preparations of the African Union Sports Council Under 20 Region 5 Games,” he said.
News of the financial injection comes at time when Team Zimbabwe athletics coach Silas Muringani has warned that their preparations are running behind schedule as they have on several occasions failed to access the training facilities at the National Sports Stadium.
Muringani noted that the track at the NSS B Arena is similar to the one at White City Stadium where athletics competitions are set to be held hence it’s imperative that his charges get accustomed to it as quickly as possible.
“We would like to train at the National Sports Stadium and ensure that we avoid injuries that come with training at improper facilities but we haven’t managed to train there as yet. At the moment most of the athletes are doing light training in the gym as well as working with their personal coaches,” Muringani said.
According to the official training programme the athletics team was supposed to have stepped up their preparations on the weekends of September 19 to 21 as well as 26 to 28.
With preparations yet to gain momentum some athletes took advantage of the 10km Westgate Marathon, held in Harare two weeks ago, to get into groove.
The Sports and Recreation Commission charges $75 for a two hour session at the giant facility, a figure which Team Zimbabwe, which needs 12 sessions per week, has asked to be waived.
Team Zimbabwe deputy chef de mission responsible for technical issues Chiedza Mafunga disclosed that they had written to the responsible authorities seeking to be granted free access to the stadium.
“We are yet to get a response from the Ministry with regards the use of the National Sports Stadium after writing to them with our request,” Mafunga said.
Sports and Recreation Commission corporate affairs officer Tiri Nheweyembwa said the request to waiver costs for Team Zimbabwe had come through their office and they had forwarded it to the relevant ministry.
“We got the request and wrote to the Ministry of Sports, Arts and Culture seeking to waiver the charges for Team Zimbabwe and we are still awaiting a response,” Nheweyembwa said.
However, there was some good news coming in with Tagara revealing that the Ministry of Local Government, Public Works and National Housing, which administers the NSS, had finally acceded to Team Zimbabwe’s request late on Friday.
“The request to the Ministry of Local Government, Public Works and National Housing for Team Zimbabwe to be allowed to use the National Sports Stadium in its preparations for the African Union Sports Council Under 20 Region 5 Games has been received. The Team has been allowed to use the B Arena of the National Sports Stadium,” he said.
