adminRobert Mutsauki
THE 2nd African Youth Games preparations continue in earnest with the chef de mission seminar taking place in the host city of Gaborone,Botswana, on Wednesday and Thursday.A total of 53 delegates representing all member countries are expected to attend this important session which comes just six months before the staging of the Games which have been slated to run from May 22 to 31, 2014.
The main purpose of the seminar is to brief the Chefs on the various organisational and technical aspects and requirements of the Games as well as to give them the opportunity to inspect the sports venues and facilities.
During the seminar, various presentations will be made by different departments of the Local Organising Committee otherwise known as the Botswana African Youth Games Organising Committee (BAYGOC).
Issues in the Games Master Plan such as accreditation, visa arrangements, local transportation, delegation registration, Games Village set up, hotels, medical facilities, sports venues, programme and entries, security, ceremonies and marketing, among others, will be covered during the presentations on the first day with the tour of sports venues and facilities taking place on the next day.
As the Association of National Olympic Committees of Africa’s Technical Director, I will also make a presentation to the Chefs on Anoca expectations in terms of their role and responsibilities before, during and after the Games.
It is envisaged that the interactive seminar will enable the participants to get a better appreciation of the state of preparedness of the hosts as well as positioning the Chefs to play their role more effectively so that their respective delegations will have a successful mission next May.
To this end each Chef will get a chef de mission manual which provides all the information required as reference material. This is necessary because while some of the Chefs may have the relevant experience, quite a significant number will be playing this role for the first time and hence the need for appropriate guidance.
The president of Anoca, Lassana Palenfo, is taking advantage of this seminar to lead a powerful delegation which includes the second vice-president in charge of Games and the treasurer-general to engage the Botswana authoritie0s on their state of preparedness to host the Games.
Apart from addressing the Chefs, and making a public presentation of the Anoca financial contribution to Gaborone 2014, a meeting with the Minister of Youth, Sport and Culture, Shaw Kgathi, is on the cards and will involve key representatives of BAYGOC and the Botswana National Olympic Committee.
The hosting agreement signed in April will provide a framework for deliberations. The first edition of the African Youth Games was held in Rabat, Morroco, in July 2010 and attracted just over 1 000 athletes from 41 countries participating in 16 sport codes but Gaborone 2014 will cater for 2 500 young athletes participating in 20 sport codes.
The Games cater for athletes in the 14 to 18 years age range. For the African athletes, the Games will serve as a useful preparation platform for the Youth Olympic Games in Nanjing, China, in August 2014.
The International Sport Federations of athletics, basketball and swimming have also agreed to use Gaborone 2014 as a qualifying tournament for Nanjing 2014.
Robert Mutsauki is the Technical Director of the Association of National Olympic Committees of Africa and is based at the organisation’s headquarters in Abuja, Nigeria
Online Reporter