Wenslus Murape
Bruce Chikuni, Sports Reporter
PROPHET Walter Magaya says he has set aside rewards for Zimbabwean sprinters, Makanaka Charamba and Tinashe Makarawu, who captured the imagination by qualifying for the men’s 200m final at the Olympics in Paris, France.
Makarawu finished sixth and Charamba finished eighth.
Dubbed the “Makamaka Express”, the two showed they have the potential to break onto the medal podium in the future.
Letshile Tebogo became the first African man to win the 200m gold at the Olympics with an African record of 19.46s.
It was his country’s first gold Olympics gold.
Magaya, who is also hosting Zimbabwe rugby team who were recently crowned African champions later this week, told Zimpapers Sport his plans to honour the two sprinters for punching above their weight at the biggest sporting event in the world.
“I think Charamba and Makarawu are not being celebrated enough for their efforts to show the world our capabilities on the big stage.
“This shows we have the capacity as a nation but we are not just ticking the right boxes and, if you ask me, I believe those guys should have done better.
“I’m not taking anything away from them and I believe they inspired a lot of children to follow their path. I have prepared something special for them because they deserve to be appreciated,” said Magaya.
He added:
“We have to find better ways to motivate those who are willing to push the limits for the cause of our country.
“If we can adopt that culture, it will then motivate whoever is assigned to represent the country to give his or her best.
“We need to celebrate our own, that’s how we can only grow as a country.”
Mathew Masinge
Online Reporter