admin
Brandon Moyo, Sports Reporter
PREPARATIONS for the Africa Junior Tennis Championship that is set to be held in Harare starting on Saturday are near completion with the organisers ready for the big event which will run till January 15.
Coordinators said they are doing the final touches and concluding all the requirements for the event to be a success and teams are expected to start arriving in the capital today and tomorrow.
“We are putting the final touches for the games but we are good to go. Mauritius and Mozambique first teams to arrive on the fifth (today) rest are in on the sixth (tomorrow),” said the tournament director, Linsent Tafadzwa Chitiyo.
A total of 11 countries are expected to jet into the country for the continental showpiece which is also known as Zonal Championships. The tournament will kick off with an individual event and will be concluded by a team contest from January 11-15.
Chitiyo said the tournament will be important for everyone involved in the sport, from coaches to players, fans, officials, and the corporate world. He added that it will play a part in contributing to sports tourism through exposure to the region’s different cultures.
“Such a prestigious event is good for Tennis Zimbabwe and the country at large as it offers more opportunities for our players, coaches, officiating officials, fans, our corporates to be associated with such events, including sports tourism as we get to learn the cross cultures within the region,” said Chitiyo.
As the hosts, Zimbabwe were given six slots per age group in the tournament, eight boys, as well as the same number of girls 14 and under, nine boys and an equal number of girls in the 16 and under age group in the team events.
“As hosts, we are allowed to have more entries than our visitors which is good in terms of giving our local athletes opportunities to earn continental Confederation of African Tennis (CAT) rankings. Further, our technical structures will also be able to evaluate and analyse the gaps in terms of player, coach, and officials’ development in-line with Tennis Zimbabwe strategic goals,” said Chitiyo.
As the tournament is underway, Zimbabwe will also play host to the tennis presidents’ annual general meeting (AGM).
“It is also pleasing to note that during the course of the tournament, we are hosting the regional tennis presidents’ AGM,” said Chitiyo. – @brandon_malvin
Online Reporter