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The much travelled and world acclaimed swimmer who first grabbed international headlines during the 2004 Olympics Games in Athens, Greece, looked in good shape at Hillside swimming pool where she was conducting a training session for the Matabeleland senior team.
”To be quite honest with you I am still undecided at the moment since I have to sit down and make a decision. I love swimming and the sport has always been a part of my life. I just cannot imagine life without swimming and that is the reason why I am here helping up-and-coming swimmers,” she said.
When quizzed if she will be available for the 2016 Olympics in Brazil, Coventry said she still has a lot to offer but it comes down to sponsorship which is difficult to source at the moment.
”Everything will depend on sponsorship and if I get the right sponsorship then I may give it another go at the 2016 Olympics. I am in good shape and I can still compete at the highest level and bring some more medals for the country,” said Coventry.
The former World and Olympic champion rounded up her tour of Bulawayo on Sunday when she trained the Matabeleland junior team at Hillside.
During the 2007 All Africa Games in Algeria Coventry kept the world spellbound when she put up a polished performance winning seven gold medals and two silver medals.
After becoming an Olympic champion in Athens, she went on to defend her 200m backstroke at the Beijing 2008 Games and came second in the 200m and 400m individual medley and also the 100m backstroke.
In August 2009, Coventry stunned the world during the 13th Fina World Swimming Championships in Rome, Italy when she set a world record in the women’s 200m backstroke with a time of 2 minutes 04.81 seconds.
In 2009, she was duly rewarded when the well respected United States based magazine, Swim-ming World Magazine named her among the Top Five World Female Swimmers of the year.
Coventry was third behind Italy’s Federica Pellegrini who was in first place and Germany’s Britta Stefen in second place.
Online Reporter