Chronicle Editor
Innocent Kurira, Sports Reporter
HE is certainly one of the best paralympians Bulawayo has produced and his medals cabinet speaks volumes.
Shepherd Gumede boasts of over 30 gold, one silver and one bronze medal.
And this excludes some victories with no medals.
Not only has he represented the city, but he is also an award-winning national team athlete.
Gumede (27) has achieved quite a lot in his career, but he is still hungry for more.
With a best time of 10,7 seconds in the 100m T13 and 21,92 seconds for 200m T13, Gumede believes he has what it takes to better his times.
Irish sprinter Jason Smyth holds the world record in both events with times of 21,05 seconds in the 200m T13 and 10,46 seconds in the 100m T13.
Elliot Mujaji was the last Zimbabwean to win gold in the 100m Paralympic race in Greece 16 years ago.
Gumede feels most athletes in the country fail to reach their full potential largely due to poor financial backing.
“The biggest challenge that I and most athletes face has always been finances. Money answers all things so from eating healthy, having a training kit and going to the gym requires finances.
“There are times that I have been demoralised because finances to attend an international meet are not available. So, I believe with proper financial backing I could have achieved even more in my career,” said Gumede.
He said he started his career in track and field in 2009 while in secondary school. At the age of 16, he joined Sparrows Athletics Club and also became a member of the Bulawayo provincial team.
“In 2013 I represented Zimbabwe in the National Youth Games and brought home a gold medal. In the same year I also won two gold medals in the 100m and 200m races.
“The following year, I competed in the nationals 200m race in August and won gold, and another gold medal in the same distance in December. I was also part of the Zimbabwe team that competed in the Region 5 Youth Games,” he said.
In September 2015, Gumede was part of the African Games team in Congo Brazaville and he was also named athlete of the year.
He defended his national titles and also scooped gold in the 4x100m race.
Despite many podium finishes in his career, there is a particular one Gumede says he’ll never forget.
“The greatest moment of my career has to be the AUSC Region 5 Games hosted by Zimbabwe in 2014 where I had the priviledge of being cheered by my family, friends and members from my community,” said Gumede.
The sprinter said he is ready to return to the track and has been keeping fit during the coronavirus enforced lockdown. — @innocentskizoe
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