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THE Zimbabwe Olympic Committee (ZOC) held their first physical graduation ceremony for the Advanced Diploma in Sports Management (ASMC) programme since the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020.
The ceremony was held at their headquarters in Belvedere on Saturday.
The 23 students, in intake 15, graduated with diplomas in the advanced sports management course.
The course targets the main stakeholders of ZOC – athletes, sports managers, coaches, athlete support personnel, the media, sport delivery agents, sponsors, Government and their related organs personnel, among others.
Titus Zvomuya, one of the two programme directors for the course, said the class of 2021 joined a unique team of trained sports administrators who had also undergone the same programme in the past.
“In attendance were ZOC board members, members of the ZOC Secretariat, including CEO Stephen Mudawarima, SRC staff and former director general Charles Nhemachema.
“Several Ministry of Youth, Sport, Arts and Recreation, among them the current director of Sport and Recreation and programme facilitator with the SASMC programme, Eugenia Chidhakwa, were also there.
“Chidhakwa was in the initial class of 2008,” said Zvomuya.
“The programme has been running since 2008 and the purpose is to increase the effectiveness of sports administrators by equipping them with sound managerial skills.
“It covers core dimensions of managerial competencies that help participants manage their sports organisations effectively and efficiently.
“More than ever before, sport is an essential part of our modern society, which is more global and changing more rapidly than any previous time in history.
“In response to some of the new and complex challenges facing sport, sports organisations must develop more robust business models.”
Added Zvomuya:
“It is also essential that sports organisations demonstrate high standards of governance in order to create and maintain confidence in their activities and protect the integrity of sports.
“These challenges will require the next generation of sports administrators to be focused on the latest trends.”
The International Olympic Committee, through Olympic Solidarity, provide the Zimbabwe Olympic Committee with the tools to take action and make a positive difference.
One of the graduates, Munyaradzi Biggles Gwanzura, a sports administrator and MWC Sport director, said he was thankful to the Zimbabwe Volleyball Association for recommending him for the course.
“I thank the Zimbabwe Volleyball Association for recommending me.
“Passion needs to be backed by knowledge. This knowledge fosters credibility. Beyond all that, implementation is what is important,” said Munyaradzi.
He is currently in Olympia, Greece, attending the Young Olympic Ambassadors programme, a convention of young people in sport from different countries around the world.
“We will be learning about the Olympic Movement and Olympism in the digital era.
“The promotion of physical activity via digital engagement strategies and virtual sports as well as networking and exploring the different history in Greece,” he said.
He was accompanied by Munashe Dangare, a youth Olympian who represented the country in hockey at the Argentina Youth Olympics.
She is also part of the Zimbabwe Olympic Committee Athletes Commission.
Mathew Masinge
Online Reporter