Online Reporter
Ellina Mhlanga
Zimpapers Sports Hub
FOLLOWING an outstanding show by the 4x400m relay team at the Debswana World Relays over the weekend, National Athletics Association of Zimbabwe director of coaching Phakamile Lisimati is happy to see locally-based talent breaking new ground.
Zimbabwe men’s 4x400m relay team, made up of captain Gerren Muwishi, Dennis Hove, Leeford Zuze and Thandazani Ndhlovu, shone at the relays, setting a new national record, on their way to a fifth finish in the final.
It was a historic feat as they became the first team to reach the World Relays final.
Not only that, but the team will also be in Beijing, China for the 2027 World Championships, rubbing shoulders with the best.
For Lisimati witnessing locally based athletes rising to stand their own at the world level is an indicator of possibilities and what they can achieve with homegrown talent.
“As you all can see, all our athletes are local athletes. A homegrown solution is the way to go.
“We began this homegrown solution some time back when we had our local marathon runners representing us.
“And now it’s our local sprinters that are taking us to the world stage and to the world finals. This is just an amazing feat and a historic feat for Athletics Zimbabwe.”
Lisimati, who is also the national head coach, paid tribute to coaches working with the athletes in their respective clubs.
“We are quite excited, and again we always appreciate the work done by the individual coaches to these athletes at their club level.
“We also appreciate the funding that was done by the major stakeholders behind this performance of the team, which is NAAZ and the Zimbabwe Olympic Committee.
“Our sponsors to this event and all the key stakeholders that were involved,” added Lisimati.
While in the past NAAZ have focused more on having athletes accessing scholarships abroad, mainly the US for further development and exposure, with the hope they can make global stages, the association has also now taken a deliberate approach to focus on locally-based talent.
This was the second consecutive appearance by the 4x400m team at the World Relays after taking part at the same competition last year in Guangzhou, China.
However, things did not go well after as the team was disqualified in the second qualifying round.
And bouncing back to earning a fifth-place finish in Botswana was a major milestone.
“We are glad, and this is a very important step in the history of athletics in Zimbabwe.
“I am just remembering when we went to Guangzhou last year, our team didn’t do very well but we took that as a learning curve, a step, and we took all the criticism that we got from everyone who was looking, following and behind the team.
“I am happy to say fifty percent of the team is the same boys that were in Guangzhou and they are still doing well,” Lisimati said.
Ndhlovu joined the team for this year’s campaign and proved to be a key member anchoring the team.
“The competition was tough because of the high level, of course, but I didn’t feel too much pressure.
“As the anchor, I trusted my teammates to do their best and put me in a good position.
“It was a great experience overall.”
The 21-year-old feels this will help him grow as an individual.
“Breaking the national record twice in just a few weeks shows that we are capable of so much more.
“It also helps me grow as an individual and gets me used to performing at a high level.
“For me, the focus now is on the African Championships. My goal is to win a medal there, both in the relay and as an individual,” said Ndhlovu.
The Africa Senior Championships run from May 12 to 17 in Accra, Ghana.
