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Ellina Mhlanga Senior Sports Reporter
NATIONAL head coach field events Aaron Whyte says they are looking forward to a huge event as they hold the National Field Events Championships tomorrow at the National Sports Stadium.
The competition is being organised by the National Athletics Association of Zimbabwe.
The competition is targeting athletes from Under-12 to seniors. Participants will take part in high jump, triple jump, long jump, shot put, discus and javelin.
Whyte said they have received positive response from schools and clubs, and are hopeful of a big event.
“As of today (yesterday) we have got about 112 athletes who have registered, which is quite a huge number.
“And we have got schools like Kutama, who are bringing about 37 athletes, and followed by Dominican Convent Harare, which has got about 34. So it’s something very positive when we see schools and clubs contributing such large numbers.
“We are expecting it to be a big event. We have got quite a large number in the Under-16 and Under-14 age group, which has what has been a characteristic we have been noticing in Zimbabwe sport, that you know at the base there, that’s where you have got a lot of athletes.
“But as you go up you start losing those athletes, which is one of the reasons why we are having this event starting from that age group because we want to start creating the data base from that base age group, from Under-12, Under-14 going up,” said Whyte.
Registration is open up to the day of competition.
“In some categories like senior women, (we have) some events that have got very little numbers. But now what we are going to do is these events like senior women and junior women where they use same equipment and same standards, those groups will be combined though when it comes to scoring there will be recorded separately.
Another coach Mcgregor Manuhwa welcomed the move by the national association to stage the championships specifically focusing on field events.
He was part of the coaches that attended the Confederation of African Athletics Under-18 and Under-20 Championships in Zambia between April and May, where Zimbabwe’s most medals came from the field events.
“Amongst a number of initiatives that have been implemented by NAAZ, this is one initiative that’s going to boost the field event athletes.
“After discovering our medals came from the field events, this angle that has been taken will surely produce massive results.
“The event is not only focusing on one province but all provinces. We are sure to come up with a strong base and work from there. Despite NAAZ arranging such an event they also made it entry free to accommodate all. I have no doubt this will be the beginning of a new era,” said Manuhwa.
Tomorrow’s event is an initiative to promote field events and the national association is also preparing for next year as several major competitions are lined up starting with the African Games in March.
They are looking forward to the Africa Senior Championships, World Under-20 Championships, Paris 2024 Olympic Games, regional competitions such as the Southern Africa Region Senior and Junior Championships.
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