Zim sprinters Jamaica-bound

World Wide Scholarships has sealed a deal which will see these runners training with a top Jamaican club.
In fact, African junior sprinters will get the break of a lifetime to train with the Racers Track and Field club in Jamaica under the invitation of World Wide Scholarships Academy.
WWS president, Munya Maraire, said yesterday that this agreement is set to see athletes chosen by his academy and invited friends attending a yearly training camp run by top Jamaican sprints coach Glenn Mills at Racers Track and Field Club.
Mills is the world’s most decorated sprints coach and in the words of Maraire, he is “a man I need to sit at his feet and learn from”.
Coach Mills is the personal coach to Yohan Blake, the 2011 100m World Champion, and Usain Bolt, the world record holder in the 100m, 200m and 4x100m relay.
Mills has also coached over 12 Olympians and World Champions and is the most decorated athletics coach in the world.
Maraire said the athletes that will be picked to participate in this new training programme under Mills are those “who we believe will sound the national anthems of Africa in the future.”
“I am a person who loves to work with junior athletes as our main initiative as an organisation is to link talented youths with scholarship opportunities and platforms where they can develop and grow.
“This tour will be the best experience that any athlete will have both mentally and physically. Training with the best boosts confidence and awareness of what it takes to be the best. I encourage the companies in Africa to assist in the funding of this trip for aspiring athletes, as we cannot wait to put pressure on governments across the continent.
“We as corporate Africa must get involved in developing our youths,” Maraire said.
He also said South African sprinter Justine Palframan had a fund-raising function at the George Hotel in Eshowe, her home town, on October 28 this year where small scale farmers and business owners showed tremendous support for their hometown hero to fund-raise for her to attend this training programme under the WWS banner.
Athletes on this trip will travel and train with Bolt and Blake to name but a few, Maraire said.
And to get the ball rolling, athletes Netsai Sabau, Jon Deuschle and coach Maraire were invited to attend the first training camp from December 11 to December 23.
Five other athletes – Garth Chibanda, David Tinago, Justine Palframan, Tinashe Mutanga, Tatenda Tsumba – will attend another training camp from January 14 to February 1, 2012.
“I have coached two Africa sprints champions at junior level – Gabriel Mvumvure and Tinashe Mutanga – and many Southern Regional medallists and finalists.
“My ambition is to see one of the athletes from our stable Ngoni Makusha, who won a bronze medal at this year’s World Track and Field Championships in the long jump, becoming a world record holder,” said WWS president Maraire.
The WWS Academy is a Hi-Performance Academy that was started about five years ago with the objective of preparing talented athletes from African countries for sporting opportunities internationally.
Among its objectives is to scout and develop talent (academic and sporting development) and linking underprivileged children with local athletes in the best high schools locally in order to expose them to better facilities and learning environments.