The Sunday Mail
Veronica Gwaze
SWIMMING princess Nomvula Mjimba is part of a six-member Zimbabwean team that is set to participate at the Irish Summer Championships next week.
The championships will run from July 25-29 at the National Aquatic Centre in Dublin and the 16-year-old Mjimba will be looking at continuing with her fine form.
The South African-based swimmer has won several competitions this year and was recently in Singapore where she put up a “commendable show”.
Quinton Tayali, Paige Vander Westhuizen, Denilson Cyprianos, Liam O’Hara and Dale Bruce complete the team.
Zimbabwe Swimming Board Control chairperson Tracy Doorman said the bigger picture is about working towards Youth Olympic Games qualifying times.
“We have Youth Olympic Games in October and participation in these championships is very essential as it gives our team exposure and chances to beat qualifying times,” she said.
“Recently Nomvula Mjimba was in Singapore where she performed very well considering that she is still on a bounce back after a serious shoulder injury that resulted in her pulling out of training and several competitions for the entire season.” Doorman called on the swimmers to prove their worth at the Irish meet.
“They need to prove themselves and guarantee themselves automatic qualification into the Youth Olympics through beating the qualifying times,” she said.
“So far they are all performing at reasonable times but we are saying reasonable is not good enough because we have a target to beat.
“They are obvious signs of improvement and this is something I believe is a result of experiences the swimmers are gaining from attending various tournaments worldwide.
“We have sponsors who are making sure the swimmers attend all tournaments, so everything is in order.
“We are also fortunate that we have not suffered any injuries. All these factors keep us optimistic of pleasing performances as we head towards the Youth Olympics.”
