adminCollin Matiza Sports Editor
THE Zimbabwe Handball Federation have stepped up their preparations for next year’s Partille Cup by selecting 30 Under-16 boys and girls athletes who will represent the country at the world’s biggest handball tournament that will be held next year in June and July in Gothenburg, Sweden.
The Partille Cup is the largest youth team handball competition in the world and is open for both boys and girls of ages 10 to 21 years. It is held annually since 1970 in Gothenburg and organised by a Swede handball club IK Sävehof from that city’s Partille area.
Next year’s tournament is scheduled to run from June 30 to July 5 and ZHF will send teams to represent Zimbabwe at this event.
Alphios Magiya, the ZHF secretary-general, said yesterday that they recently asked six schools — JZ Moyo High School of Matabeleland South, Masvingo’s Danhamombe High School, Muketi Secondary School from Midlands’ Mberengwa area, Harare’s Mufakose 4 High School, Kwekwe High School from Kwekwe and Bulawayo’s Lobengula High School – to come up with a list of talented boys and girls handball players that will make the national Under-16 team for next year’s Partille Cup.
“These six schools have come up with a list of 30 players – 16 boys and 14 girls – who will now be going into camp once or twice a month until June next year. The first phase of this training camp will be held at Kwekwe High School from November 15 to 17.
“These 30 players are going to make our national Under-16 boys and girls team that will take part at next year’s Partille Cup in Sweden and the periodic training camps will be managed or supervised by our Coaches Commission. In fact, four of our top national coaches, Alan Mandeya, Farayi Gwisai, Sipho Mahlangu and Clemence Tauro who recently attended an international coaching course that was hosted by South Africa in October, will be running these periodic camps under our Coaches Commission,” Magiya said.
The ZHF secretary-general said they decided to pick the national Under-16 boys and girls team early so that they will give them adequate preparations for the 2014 Partille Cup. “In fact, after seeing our fellow African country Nigeria walking away with the boys Under-12 title at this year’s Partille Cup, we asked them what was the secret behind their success and they told us that their team made some thorough preparations ahead of this tournament. And we have decided to take the same cue from the Nigerians by picking up our national Under-16 boys and girls team well ahead of next year’s tournament and we want them to have some training camps once or twice a month until they leave for Sweden in June.
“The ZHF president (Amon Madzvamuse) has also tasked Simbiso Mupepereki to make sure that the programme is well supervised for effective training camps to take part. The main objective is to see that these athletes are adequately prepared for the Partille Cup.
“I think by doing this, both our boys and girls Under-16 team will be well prepared by the time they leave for next year’s Partille Cup and we are convinced that they will leave a mark there this time around.
“So, I would like to urge the local corporate world to chip in with some resources which will help the team during their preparations for the 2014 Partille Cup,” Magiya said.
The national Under-16 boys and girls team is likely to be joined at next year’s Partille Cup by Harare’s Girls High School and Mashrhino, a select side from Mashonaland West Province. Magiya said Harare’s Girls High School have indicated that would be sending two teams for next year’s Partille Cup and they will compete in the girls Under-21 and Under-16 age-groups.
At this year’s Partille Cup in July in Sweden, Harare’s Girls High School represented Zimbabwe in the girls Under-21 section and the Lesley Chikadaya-led team lost all their matches there. Harare’s Girls High School are now preparing to take part in the same event next year. Mashonaland West Province have also indicated that they will pick two select teams who will be compete in the Under-13 and Under-12 sections during next year’s Partille Cup in Gothenburg.
“In fact, this last Saturday, Mashonaland West Province held a selection event for the Partille Cup and four out of their seven districts participated in this competition.
“Seventeen teams took part in the Under-12, 14 and 16 age-groups and that was a good attendance for a selection event.
“They (Mashonaland West Province) will also be holding their own training camps for these teams that they would like to take part at next year’s Partille Cup and I think we are going to have another big delegation from Zimbabwe at this tournament,” Magiya said.
At this year’s Partille Cup, Zimbabwe was represented by 96 athletes and officials, and this was the largest contingent from a local national sport association to represent the country at a single major international sporting event since the attainment of Independence in April 1980.
In Gothenburg in July this year, the Partille Cup attracted a record 1 120 teams and 21 500 participants from across the globe and Zimbabwe were represented by three school sides — Harare’s Girls High School, Howard High School of Chiweshe and Chishawasha Mission Primary School from Chishawasha in Mashonaland East Province — and Mashrhino, a girls Under-12 select side, which was picked from Mashonaland West Province.
Online Reporter