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Innocent Kurira , Sports Writer
BASKETBALL Union of Zimbabwe (Buz) president Joe Mujuru says the association is hopeful they will soon be having more participants for the annual International Basketball Federation (Fiba) Africa Youth Camps.
The Fiba Africa Youth Camp is Fiba Africa’s flagship event for the training and development of players. Since its inception in 2021, the youth camp has reached 80 percent of the African countries, impacting 43 nations.
Globally, 90 girls and 150 boys have participated in the different youth camps.
The Fiba Africa Youth Camp has been implemented as an elite programme to identify and harness the best young African basketball players, who are coached by a set of experts delivering advice on the technical aspects of the game.
Zimbabwe had only one participant accepted for the just ended camp held in the capital city of Mali, Bamako. The camp ran from September 20-22.
Junior national team player Tendai Mavera represented the country at the camp.
“In future, we hope to have more representation at these meetings which give our players a chance to rub shoulders with the best players in the continent. It also gives the opportunity to train in top facilities. For one to be accepted for the camp we apply and the final decision rests with Fiba whom we hope will soon increase the number of slots for us which will help in terms of exposing our talent to the rest of the world,” said Mujuru.
The camps are an important part of Fiba Africa’s development strategy. The training camp aims at preparing the players for the rigours of competition. Some 55 players, coming from more than 30 countries, will congregate in Mali where they will meet 15 coaches during the three-day camp.
Fiba Africa has collaborated with some of the most notable African basketball names to ensure this event’s success. Fiba instructors Cheick Sarr Nour Amri and Joe Touomou will feature along Camp Director Naoufal Al Uariachi and NBA Academy coach Alfred Aboya in Bamako for the coming days.
The Bamako camp will be a boys-only event.
An all-girls camp, this time featuring 15 female coaches, will be held from today to Thursday in Kigali, Rwanda.
Skill development, personal development and leadership skills will occupy a big part of the campers’ days at the arena.
On the final day, an All-Star Game will see the best players battle each other before the closing ceremony brings an end to the camp.
Renowned basketball figures such as Astou N’Diaye, NBA Africa Ambassador; Christelle Ngarsanet, former Ivorian national team player, Robert Pack, who played in the NBA for 13 seasons before becoming the Rwanda Energy Group (REG) head coach for the BAL season 2 and NBA legend Olumide Oyedeji were part of the line-up of instructors for the different workshops.
These workshops also aim to give young people the tools to fuel change using basketball as a medium, as well as giving them tools for their personal development and instilling leadership values in the young players.
Since its launch in 2021, a number of players have made a name for themselves. Among them, Egypt’s Salma Khedr and Saifaddin Hendawy, Madagascar’s Andri Lovasoa and Mali’s Fatoumata Samake. — @innocentskizoe
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