Sports academy joins fight against drug abuse

BEITBRIDGE United Academy in Matabeleland South Province has joined the rest of the country in fighting against drug abuse through nurturing young talent in sport.

The academy was founded in 2021 by Mandlenkosi Moyo, Edmore Ndou, Lovemore Ndou and Gladmore Ndou with a goal of nurturing talent and fighting drug abuse.

In an interview, Moyo said their goal was to fight drug abuse that has destroyed the lives of a number of youths in the area.

“Drug abuse is very high in Beitbridge and a number of youths succumb to it because they will be idle and we decided that there was a need for us to come in and create opportunities. There are a number of youths that are talented in sports and when they finish school they have nothing to do so the idea is to catch them young and nurture the talents and ensure that they are kept away from the streets,” said Moyo.

Moyo added that they have a number of teams of different age groups.

“Our main focus is on football and at the moment, we have Under-13s, 15s and 17s. We are also planning on incorporating girls’ soccer and netball. We have youths from both urban and rural areas,” said Moyo.

He said one of their main goals was to produce talented players who will go and represent the town.

“The main goal is to have a place where young players undergo rigorous training and development, with a focus on technical ability, tactical understanding and physical fitness.

“We are proud to note that some of our players have secured some scholarships and recently we won the Herentals tournament. The academy’s target is to produce talented players that will join lower division teams,” said Moyo.