Online Reporter
Zimpapers Sports Hub
NATIONAL Athletics Association of Zimbabwe (NAAZ) president Tendayi Tagara has commended sprinter Makanakaishe Charamba’s recent performances as he continues to light up the track.
Tagara believes the purple patch Charamba has hit should stand him in good stead ahead of the World Athletics Championships in Japan in September.
The United States-based Charamba broke the men’s 200m national record when running 19.92 seconds at the preliminaries of the SEC Outdoor Track and Field Championships, at the University of Kentucky on May 15.
Zimbabwe’s other top sprinter, Tapiwanashe Makarawu, had set the new national record in April last year when he clocked 19.93 seconds.
In the last few months, it is Charamba who has been making waves on the track.
Having had an impressive indoor season, he went on to get the outdoor season on a high last month when posting a world-leading time of 19.99 seconds in the men’s 200m at the Tom Jones Memorial in Gainesville, Florida.
And a week ago he set a new national record of 19.92 seconds.
The national record-breaking performance saw him ranking fourth on the World Athletics Season Top Lists.
“It’s good progression from indoor to outdoor. Running under 20s twice in a short period of time is incredible,” Tagara said of the athlete’s performance.
Charamba is one of the five Zimbabwean athletes who have secured their spots at the World Athletics Championships in Tokyo from September 13 to 21.
He has qualified for 200m.
“I hope he will carry it into the World Championships in September if he is able to peak again after the college calendar,” said Tagara. “He is a finalist candidate; a medal is a bonus we all crave for.”
With Makarawu also having qualified for the global meet, Tagara is confident the two sprinters, who reached the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, can push each other in Japan.
“They can push each other to the finals in Japan; everything boils down to the coach’s plan,” he said.
Charamba’s performances have seen him among the big boys on the world rankings, regularly maintaining a spot in the top 20 and is ranked 12th.
“The season is still long, it’s only the beginning of the outdoor (season) for colleges,” said Tagara. “There are others not in college, who are starting to peak, so real position in terms of performance is checked around August, going into the championships.
“The rankings will be changing every now and then as the summer develops full time.”
With the qualification window for track and field events open until August, Tagara has indicated they are keeping their fingers crossed that a few more athletes meet the entry standards to the global meet.
NAAZ director of coaching, talent identification and development, Lisimati Phakamile, believes the US-based athlete stands a chance for a podium finish at the global stage in the near future.
“He is now a force to reckon with on the world athletics stage as he was at one point the world leading 200m runner, the world’s fastest at some point,” he said.
“We are looking forward to him representing the country at the World Championships, and definitely we are hoping that this time around he will be on the podium.
“We are hopeful that without any problems or challenges coming up, he is in very good form. We are hoping he maintains his peak form that he displayed during his collegiate games all the way up to September at the World Championships.”
In 2023, Zimbabwe had four athletes at the World Championships in Budapest, Hungary.
The team was made up of three marathon runners — Isaac Mpofu, Ngonidzashe Ncube and Fortunate Chidzivo — and sprinter Makarawu.
Tinaye Agere
Online Reporter