Experience of a lifetime

Tinashe Kusema
Deputy Sports Editor

IT goes without saying that Team Zimbabwe’s performance at the Tokyo Olympics has divided opinion among the domestic sporting fraternity.

While many have called it an abject failure, others have opted to look on the bright side.

In Scott Vincent’s case, he managed to turn a bad start during the opening day of the competition into three solid rounds of good golf.

Swimmers Peter Weltzer and Donata Katai posted personal-best times, with the former breaking his own local record in the process.

Rower Peter Purcell-Gilpin narrowly missed out on the semi-finals and a chance to compete for a medal.

However, one of Chinese philosopher Confucius’ teachings might probably best describe how the athletes themselves might feel about their Olympic experience.

He said: “By three methods we may learn wisdom: First, by reflection, which is noblest; second, by imitation, which is easiest; and third, by experience, which is the bitterest.”

Golfer Vincent, speedster Ngoni Makusha and his coach David Tinago find themselves wiser from their time in Japan.

“I think it was a very successful trip and I played really well.

“I learnt a lot, as this was my goal coming into the tournament — learn and grow,” Vincent said.

Of all Zimbabwean athletes, Vincent had the nerviest of starts, finishing 52nd in the 60-man tournament that was also marred by bad weather.

The US-based golfer bounced back on the second day, posting a solid 5-under-par 67, and was ranked 17th heading into the fourth and final round.

The 29-year-old finished the tournament as the best-placed African, carding rounds of 67, 66 and 67 in his last three rounds.

That was not enough to make the podium, but he finished tied with Venezuelan Jhonattan Vegas and Christiaan Buzeidenhout at 11-under-par overall.

“There was a lot of nerves and excitement in that first round, and I learnt that I need to have a better understanding of that,” he said.

“I can’t let the occasions get the best of me.

“That first round of golf taught me a lot and I think I adjusted well going forward.

“The rest of the rounds were just good and solid and there are lots to be proud of from that.

“I am happy with how the tournament ended.”

Tinago, a last-minute replacement for national team coach Lisimati Phakamile, spent the better part of his time learning and absorbing as much knowledge as possible.

That was in-between races and training sessions with athlete Ngoni Makusha.

The 400-metre hurdles men and women finals, won by Norway’s Karsten Warholm and the United States’ Sydney McLaughlin, were a particular highlight for the coach.

For him, it was simply observing how other athletes train and prepare while picking the brains of fellow coaches.

“I enjoyed the Games and watching some of the races like the 400-metre hurdles men and women were a particular highlight.

“I also met and talked to some top athletes like the Jamaican pair of Yohan Blake and Elaine Thompson-Herah, and spent most of my free time observing how other coaches prepare and coach their athletes.

“Retired long jumper Dwight Philips is now a coach and I managed to pick his brain on a number of issues a couple of times.

“It was a very eye-opening experience and I intend to use and share the knowledge, tips and advice I learnt going forward,” Tinago said.

His sentiments are shared by Makusha, who, despite failing to reach his targets, views the trip as a success.

“It wasn’t a bad outing as such.

“Of course I was expecting a better result in terms of making it as far as the semis and running a PB (personal best), but I am still happy with my performance.

“I managed to go past the preliminaries, which was the first target, and I had a good start to the Olympics during that stage.

“I refuse to make any excuses in terms of why I didn’t make it to the semis; suffice to say I want to view this as a learning experience and do better next time.

“I need to also learn how to handle pressure better . . . one mistake can cost you the entire race.”

He hopes to give it one more crack come Paris 2024.

“There were a lot of precautions and protocols in place to ensure our safety, as we were tested every day and movement was confined to training and races.

“I did meet a couple of athletes, observe how they trained and got a close-up view to some of the races.

“I also managed to take a few notes and tips from all that,” he said.

Among his major highlights was meeting 100m women’s gold medalist Herah, getting a close view of that race and the men’s 100-metre final.

“Competing at the Games was a personal highlight for me, which was just amazing.

“Watching the other races was also high up there in terms of highlight, with the atmosphere during the 100m finals (both men and women) just electric.

“I managed to briefly meet Elaine (Herah), wished her luck before her 200m final race and as quite surprised when Marcell Larmont Jacobs won.

“No one gave him a chance in the 100m men’s final.”