adminEllina Mhlanga Sports Reporter
NATIONAL Athletics Association of Zimbabwe president Tendai Tagara is confident in the team expected to represent the nation at the African Championships in Mauritius this week. Zimbabwe will be fielding 20 athletes in track and field events for the competition running from Thursday to Saturday in Bambous.
Some of the athletes left for South Africa on Sunday and the remaining nine are expected to leave today.
In the previous edition, Zimbabwe had nine athletes and they won two bronze medals. Tagara said although most of the athletes will be competing at the event for the first time, they stand a good chance of making it into the finals in their respective events.
“In the last championships we sent nine athletes but this time we are sending 20 athletes. We are expecting a good performance bearing in mind that some have participated in the world championships,” said Tagara.
“We expect Enlitha Ncube to be on the podium because she has shrugged off tough competition before and she is strong in the 800m.
“She finished fourth at the Africa Youth Olympics in Gaborone last year, which saw her qualifying for Nanjing, China.
“So we are challenging her to do better because she has been on the international stage before. “Most of those athletes were positioned first at the Nash competition so we hope that will count for something.
“The youth championships is an open event and that’s the advantage but the advantage for those that have been there before is that they now know what to expect.
“But it’s all in the mind, just have a positive attitude that I can do it and new comers can always pull some surprises. It’s different from the senior event where some of them are champions.”
Tagara said some of the athletes in the team will also represent Zimbabwe in the upcoming Cossasa competition early next month in Lesotho and the African Championships will play a vital role in boosting their confidence ahead of the regional event. The team is being accompanied by Wellington Zingwe, as the coach, assisted by Chuchu Chiratidzo.
Online Reporter