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Fungai Muderere in Chinhoyi
STAKEHOLDERS in the sporting fraternity have been urged to be professional and not to cut corners if the nation is to earn its place among the world’s best sporting countries.
This was established during a Sports Journalists workshop that was hosted by National Aids Council (Nac) in conjunction with the Sports Writers Association of Zimbabwe (Swaz) in Chinhoyi from Tuesday to Wednesday.
Presenting a paper titled Inclusivity in Sport, president of Sport Leaders Institute of Zimbabwe (SLIZ) Russel Mhiribidi bemoaned lack of professionalism in the running of the country’s sporting codes especially in football.
“There is a need to have a thorough look and put all the fundamentals in our sports in place. The problem in the country is that, we want to do well in sport but we don’t want to do sports well. At the moment, I can say we have an elite social football league instead of a professional league. It’s not even a semi-professional league. There is a need to understand the value of sports and join the million-dollar sporting business. It doesn’t come easy, there is a need to work for it professionally,” said Mhiribidi.
While challenging sports journalists to prioritise covering the wide range of sports codes that also include volleyball, pool, goalball, blind football and blind cricket among other disciplines, Mhiribidi added:” It is good to note that the country has done well in para-sports and in games that involve women with men’s teams struggling.
“There is also a need to have the rightful facilities that are accessible to everyone especially the disabled. We seriously need world-class venues that can accommodate everyone.”
Turning to the general benefits of Inclusivity in Sport, Mhiribidi reckoned it results in enhanced participation, social cohesion, talent development and positive role modelling.@FungaiMuderere
derick.khumalo