ZOC gears up for Youth Olympics

THE Zimbabwe Olympic Committee has shifted focus as the country prepares for the upcoming Youth Olympic Games to be held in Nanjing, China in August following an average performance by local athletes at the Botswana Africa Youth Games last month.
At the Games in Botswana, Zimbabwe managed only 10 medals, which included a gold, two silver and seven bronze, a feat that saw them occupy position 18 out of 54 nations.

ZOC’s chief executive officer Anna Mguni said they were working with different sports associations in the country to assist them build teams in preparation for the games. “As you are aware our mandate is to ensure quality participation at Olympic Games.

To this end we are assisting the associations in their schedules by providing the resources, when and where available, for athletes to participate in preparatory training events as well as competitions,” she said.

Mguni said they could not release the names of athletes who have qualified so far as they were still waiting for official communication from the International Amateur Athletics Federations.

“As ZOC we are waiting for an official communication from the International Federation through the national associations to confirm the names of the athletes who have qualified. By the end of June we should receive official communication in order for us to be able to accurately give you the information,” she said, disclosing that only five disciplines had made it for the games in China and these include athletics, equestrian, rowing, swimming and triathlon.

The ZOC boss said they were hopeful of a good show at the games and were looking forward to having their athletes benefit from the experience.

“We remain objective and optimistic that all athletes will give off their best in their various sport codes. We are sure that they will also benefit immensely from the cultural and educational activities that are an essential component of the Youth Olympic Games,” she said.

Mguni encouraged all athletes to prepare hard for the games if they wanted to win and discouraged them from using performance enhancing substances that might jeopardise their careers.

“My advice is nothing different to what they are already pursuing, they are in pursuit of excellence and we encourage them to chase their defined goals with determination. We also encourage them to remain clean, free from using substances to enhance their performance,” she said.