Online Reporter
Lovemore Dube, [email protected]
ZIMBABWEAN athletes will brace for the opening of the 2027 World Athletics Championships qualifying window, which opens on August 23, with hopes of making the grade after the governing body came up with new standards.
Competition will be stiff, especially in the sprints. So many athletes ran brilliant times this year globally.
Despite the incredible efforts by Zimbabweans, Tafadzwa Chikomba (long jump) with Denzel Simusialela and Makanakaishe Charamba in the 200m running times well inside the entry level of 20.07 seconds.
Chikomba had a season’s best jump of 8.37m 12cm better than the qualifying jump of 8.25.
Charamba was the king of Zimbabwe sprint with his 19.88 seconds in the 200m while Simusialela ran a personal best of 19.98.
Methembe Tshuma had the third best time of 20.26 seconds before a freak injury put paid to his hopes of a sub-20-second 200m at the Ghana Senior African Championships in May.
United States-based David Nyamufarira ran a best of 20.53 seconds and, like the other guys, will be eager to run the qualifying standard between 23 August and August 22, 2027.
With none of the top sprinters Simusialela (10.04), Tapiwanashe Makarawu (10.10), Tshuma (10.22) and Charamba (10.23), Zimbabwe will count on these guys bettering their times in the qualifying window, in which most are set to start their campaigns later in the year with the indoor season.
The men’s 100m qualifying standard is 9.95 seconds.
Despite impressive performances and a World Championships qualification and a new record in the 4x400m relay, none of the country’s one-lappers ran a time good enough for consideration for Beijing.
The quartet of Dennis Hove, Thandazani Ndhlovu, Leeford Zuze and Gerren Muwishi ran a 2 minute 59.01 seconds to set a national record in a year they twice set the mark for the 4x400m relay. Until earlier this year, the record had stood at 3 minutes 00.79 seconds.
For the first time since 2004, when Lewis Banda set a national record of 44.58 seconds in the 400m, no athlete from Zimbabwe had dipped 45 seconds.
But this year the 400m runners made a big announcement that Zimbabwe deserves respect. The nearly men tag no longer belongs to them as they were the fifth best country at the World Relays where they set the national record and also got an automatic ticket to next year’s World Championships in Beijing.
Ndhlovu ran the fastest 400m of 44.64 seconds, Hove 44.88 and Zuze 44.91.
Other 400m runners had the following times: Alpha Mpofu 45.32, Carlton Siwela 45.53, Takudzwa Pahuma 45.55, Makarawu 46.34, Tinotenda Matiyenga 46.61, Kelvin Bvekerwa 46.63, Ropa
Mzondo 47.02 and Derrick Matutu 47.04.Muwishi 46.67, providing several options for the 4x400m relay team going into what should be a pregnant-with-expectation 2027 season in which
Zimbabwe will participate in the African Games and World Championships.
Ashley Miller’s hope lies in the 100m, in which she is 0.19 seconds off the standard.
