adminCollin Matiza Sports Editor
IN what could be a first for this country, four young, talented handball players — Melissa Makuwe, Norma Suche, Gareth Jerkins and Tonderai Chiwambutsa — are likely to ply their trade in Germany. They were recently picked to go for trials in the central European nation next year. This came after their outstanding performances for both the Zimbabwe girls and boys Under-18 teams during the inaugural Young Masters International tournament at Gugulethu Sports Complex in Cape Town, South Africa.
Makuwe and Suche are both from Harare’s Girls High School and they will be joined for their trials in Germany early next year by Jerkins of Bulawayo’s Northlea High School and Kwekwe High School’s Chiwambutsa.
The four players caught the eye of the director and founder of the GeBe Education and Sports Foundation, Bernd Wulffen.
The GeBe Education and Sports Foundation is a German non-profit making organisation that works with underprivileged children in South Africa and has connections with a number of national sport associations in Germany, including that country’s handball federation.
Amon Madzvamuse, the Zimbabwe Handball Federation president, confirmed this latest development yesterday.
“This is, in fact, a historic moment for us in the ZHF because never before have we had our players picked to go for trials with top clubs in Germany and we are now making frantic efforts to get sponsorship for these four players to go to Germany.
“I personally think that my dream has come true because it was my wish when I joined the ZHF to export players to Europe and expand the game of handball in Zimbabwe so that our country will be known by the so-called big guns of the sport internationally.
“This also means that all the good handball players can now all come to the courts and showcase their talents as there’s now an opportunity for them to be scouted and sent overseas to ply their trade there.
“As the ZHF president, I would like to thank all the members of my executive board that I’ve worked with to realise this dream. So, this is a gold medal or a big win and a major coup for us all,” said Madzvamuse.
Wulffen said yesterday that they were now in the process of identifying the German handball clubs that would invite the four Zimbabwean players for trials next year.
“At the Young Masters International tournament I saw these four Zimbabwean players — Makuwe, Suche, Jerkins and Chiwambutsa — who are very good and I personally think they have the potential to become handball stars and that is why we would like to send them for trials in Germany next year.
“As you know, Germany is one of the handball powerhouses in Europe if not in the world and your players can only improve their playing standards by joining big clubs there and we are here, as the GeBe Education and Sports Foundation, to facilitate all this for talented Zimbabwean handball stars,” Wulffen said from his base in Cape Town yesterday.
Online Reporter