The Sunday Mail
Veronica Gwaze
MAGRET Bangajena has been at the top for so long such that she doesn’t remember some of her conquests.
For close to a decade, Bangajena has been bagging the Annual National Sports Awards (ANSA) Sportswoman of the Year with a Disability award, yet she still yearns for much more.
The 41-year-old “disability poster girl” dreams of featuring at the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games. At those Games, she hopes to break the current 42km record.
“I am very happy to have been awarded the Sportswoman of the Year with a Disability. It is my sixth year winning it, if not more.
“While it may no longer sound as news to others, it is a clear testimony of the hard work that l’m putting it. lt is paying dividends.
“Nothing comes on a silver platter, one has to put in the work,” she said. With more than 40 accolades to her name, a fire still burns within Bangajena, although age is no longer on her side. During her sporting career, Bangajena has competed and conquered locally.
She also made her debut beyond the country’s borders in 2009 when she competed in South Africa and won gold in the 42km race, thereby marking a turning point in her career. In 2011, she was part of Zimbabwe’s first Para-Rowers team that took part at the Para-Rowers World Cup in Italy.
But despite all the accolades and big wins, the Paralympics have eluded her.
She yearns to be part of the global showcase.
“I am proud of all the achievements, especially my first race in SA and making it into the first Para-Rowers national team. But nothing can compare to the feeling of participating at the Paralympics. I want to make an impact there, I need to go and break the record. Only that will make me feel complete,” she said.
As part of the build-up to the Paralympics, Bangajena will be taking part in the Uteniqual Wheelchair Race Africa scheduled for February 14 in South Africa. She also looks forward to being among the athletes that will participate at the Paralympics Tokyo 2020 qualifiers slated for March. “In South Africa, I am hoping to break the current 42-kilometre record of two hours 45 minutes. In fact, I need to break that record. That, together with the awards, will be good confidence boosters for the Paralympic qualifiers,” said Bangajena.
The mother of one, who also works as a seed analyst in the Agriculture Ministry, also took some time to shower praises on upcoming athlete Mufarowashe Shambira.
Bangajena said she sees herself in Shambira. She said given adequate training and guidance, the young athlete has a bright future. Shambira was crowned the Junior Sportswoman of the Year with a Disability at the ANSAs.
She also bagged gold in the 400m race at the first Pan-African Games in Cairo, Egypt.
At the age of 15, Bangajena was diagnosed with osteogenic sarcoma, a cancer that affected her bones and led to the amputation of both her legs.
