THE Zimbabwe Olympic Committee is waiting for a last minute qualification of swimmers Denilson Cyprianos and Donato Katai as well
as golfer Scott Vincent before they can unveil their team for the 2024 Paris Olympic Games.
The Olympic Committee is hoping that the three will be offered universaility places to join the five other Zimbabwean athletes who have already qualified for the global sports festival
Universality places are offered to athletes, who would have failed to qualify through the normal qualification process but can participate at the Olympic Games because of the very small size of the country's qualified athletes.
Zimbabwe has only five athletes, who have qualified automatically for the Paris Games, and these are Tapuwa Makarawu, Rutendo Nyahora, Makanaka Charamba, Isaac Mpofu, and rower Steve Cox.
On that premise, Zimbabwe team's chef-de-mission to Paris 2024, Ringisai Mapondera said they are hoping that the swimmimg duo of Cyprianos and Katai would seal their places through the universailty system before they make public the final Zimbabwean team for the global sports festival.
"We are waiting for the universalities in swimming, which are still to be announced and perhaps one golfer," said Mapondera.
The golfer in question is Vincent who finished 16th at the 2022 Olympic Games but failed to seal automatic qualification for the 2024 Games by the set golf qualification deadline of June 17.
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Vincent is at the moment ranked 623rd in the world having reached a career high 78th when the last Olympic Games were held in Tokyo, Japan.
Although they were sensational at the All Africa Games where Cyprianos won a gold and a silver medal and Katai a bronze, their times were outside the Olympic Games qualifying standards.
Unlike in the past, the Olympic Games are no longer a free-for-all, but are now reserved for athletes who meet certain qualifying standards in their respective events
Four years ago, Zimbabwe sent only five athletes to the Tokyo Olympics, swimmers Peter Wetzall and Katai, sprinter Ngoni Makusha, rower Peter Purcel-Gilpin and Vincent and came back without a medal.
In fact, the last time Zimbabwe won a medal at the Olympic Games was way back in 2008 at the Beijing Games in China where swimmer and now sports minister Kirsty Coventry won a gold and three silvers.
The 2024 Olympic Games are scheduled to run from July 26 to August 11 taking off immediately after Euro 2024 which come to an end in Germany on July 14.
