adminMbachi Mutukula-Maregere Sports Reporter
UCI BMX world number six Tyla-Shae Donaldson feels the 87 days remaining before the start of the World Championships in Belgium is enough time for the 13-member Zimbabwe squad to intensify their training for this big cycling event. The World Championships is set to take part at the Zolder Circuit in Antwerp, Belgium, from July 17-25 and Donaldson (13) is among the Zimbabwean participants who have been selected for this event.
This will be the fifth time that Donaldson will be taking part in the World Championships where she has been making a good name for herself and is now among the world’s best riders.
Donaldson said they have enough time of practice and they just want to polish up in all the areas before they fly out to Antwerp in July. She said this will be a big event for her and the rest of the team.
“I feel happy to be among the team which is expected to go to Belgium, it is going to be interesting and I am going to try and give my country the best result.
“My first world competition was in 2008 when I was six years old and I finished in fourth place. I love this sport and in future I want to be the (world) number one in my age-group,” said Donaldson.
In 2009, Donaldson represented the country at the same event in Australia and she finished second and in 2010 she was crowned as the world champion in South Africa. Donaldson also highlighted that they train every day and she is more than ready for this year’s World Championships.
In the juniors’ elite section, Zimbabwe will be represented by Donaldson’s brother, Scott, who is also confident of coming tops at this event. This will be the first time for Scott to lead the team in this category at the World Championships.
Scott has been racing for 14 years and is excited to be selected to lead the team at this year’s event.
In the elite level, which is the highest section of the competition, Zimbabwe will be represented by Penias Tenthani.
This will be the first time for Tenthani to take part in this category which he said might be tough but he will try his best to be in the top four.
“I have been racing BMX for the past six years and have had some good memorable experience. I have achieved good goals.
“This sport is very competitive and it needs a lot of focus.
“In three weeks’ time I will be going to Durban, South Africa, to gear up my preparations since there is a super cross check which we need to do before we go to Belgium,” said Tenthani.
Tawanda Marova is another rider who is optimistic about doing well at the World Championships.
This is Marova’s third time to go for the World Championships and he is looking forward to it. “I am now popular in my community for being one of the good riders of BMX racing, it is really good news in my life,” Marova said.
Meanwhile, BMX coach Tafi Machingaidze said he was impressed with the good show which was displayed by the riders in the season-opener of the second term racing which was held at Old Georgians at the weekend.
Zimbabwe BMX National Team
Girls: Rebekah Oberholzer (8), Tyla-Shae Donaldson (13)
Boys: Nathan Horner (8), Daniel Collet, Ben Oberholzer (10), Mitchell Siddle (11), Daniel Johnson (12), Joshua Van Blerk, Campbell Wright (13), Adrew Chamunorwa (16), Scott Donaldson(Junior elite), Penias Tenthani (elite), Tawanda Murova (17-24).
Online Reporter