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Ellina Mhlanga-Senior Sports Reporter
ZIMBABWE’S participation at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games came to an end yesterday with the last representative, Scott Vincent, concluding his participation in the men’s golf event ranked 16th at the end of the final round.
Vincent did well to make the top 20, out of the 60 golfers, as the men’s event came to a dramatic ending at Kasumigaseki Country Club.
The Zimbabwean golfer qualified for the Olympics when he finished 51st during the qualifying event to be among the 60 golfers that made up the field in Tokyo.
Vincent became the first golfer to represent the country at the Olympic Games and to be ranked 16th is a commendable feat.
American Xander Schauffele took the men’s golf gold medal on a final day which ended with a seven-way play-off, for the bronze medal, amid high drama.
CT Pan of Chinese Taipei finally claimed it on the fourth knockout hole but there was no medal for Ireland’s Rory McIlroy and Great Britain’s Paul Casey.
Slovakia’s Rory Sabbatini closed with an Olympic record 10-under round of 61 to take the silver at 17-under-par.
“I really wanted to win for my dad. I am sure he is crying somewhere right now. I kind of wanted this one more than any other,” Schauffele, whose grandparents live in Tokyo, told BBC Sport.
“You are trying to represent your country to the best of your ability and then you add family stuff on top of that. I’m probably going to have a nice call with my grandparents tonight.
“Everyone is back home watching. I was feeling the love from San Diego and Las Vegas this whole time. I’m a little speechless right now, quite honestly.”
Zimbabwe had five athletes — Vincent, Ngoni Makusha, Peter Purcell-Gilpin, Donata Katai and Peter Wetzlar — competing in golf, athletics, rowing and swimming at the Tokyo Games.
The five athletes were participating at the Olympics for the first time.
Vincent and Purcell-Gilpin met the qualifying standards to secure their places at the Tokyo 2020 Games.
Athletics and swimming were awarded universality slots, after local athletes failed to meet the qualifying standards.
This is the third consecutive time Zimbabwe has failed to produce a podium performance at the Olympics.
The last medals came from swimming icon, Kirsty Coventry in 2008, at the Beijing Games, when she picked four medals.
Purcell-Gilpin was ranked 20 out of 32 participants in the men’s single sculls.
The Zimbabwean rower reached the quarter-finals but failed to make semi-final A/B.
In swimming, both Donata Katai, competing in the 100m backstroke and Peter Wetzlar, in the men’s 100m freestyle, managed to post their personal best times.
But, they could not make the best 16, for the semi-finals.
Wetzlar also set a new national record.
Katai, making her debut appearance at the age of 17, was also the first black Zimbabwean swimmer to compete at the global multi-sport showpiece.
She set a new personal best of 1 minute 02.73 seconds in the 100m backstroke when she came first in her heats.
Her previous best time, going into the Games, was 1 minute 04.63 seconds, and the improvement is something which her team will embrace as a positive story.
She was ranked 34 out of 41 swimmers.
Katai’s coach at Sharks swimming club, Kathy Lobb, is confident the future is bright, for the promising swimmer.
Wetzlar came fifth in the heats in 50.31 seconds, taking off some time from his previous personal best time, of 50.50 seconds.
He was ranked 42 out of 70 swimmers.
On Saturday, Makusha managed to progress to Round One, after coming first in 10.32 second,s in Heat One of the men’s 100m preliminary round.
However, he found the going tough in Round One, and came seventh, with a time of 10.43 seconds in Heat Six.
That ended his campaign at the Games as he missed out on the semi-finals.
For the athletes, they will be hoping the lessons picked, from their participation at the rescheduled Games, will help them in the future having been exposed to a higher level of competition.
Online Reporter