Zimbabwe Under-18 and Under-20 athletics team coach Brian Nhubu has praised the athletes who participated at the African Junior Championships in Zambia after they scooped seven medals.
The five-day event ran between Saturday and Wednesday at the Levy Mwanawasa Stadium in Ndola.
Zimbabwe picked up three silver and four bronze medals, in both field and track events for both age groups.
The trio of Kimberly Kachambwa, Shawn Katsidzira and Samuel Dauti bagged silver medals in the Under-18 women discus, Under-20 men’s 400m hurdles and Under-18 men triple jump events, respectively.
Rodney Ngezimani, Takunda Mubariki and Takunda Mhete scooped bronze medals for Under-20 men’s shot put, Under-20 men’s discus and Under-20 men’s triple jump whilst the 4x100m Under-20 women's relay team also managed a podium finish.
“The event was a huge success for Zimbabwe because we have managed to secure seven medals. We are extremely elated by the performances posted by our athletes. There was also excellent unity of purpose from everyone, right from the government of Zimbabwe, Ministry of Sport, Arts and Recreation, the entire National Athletics Association of Zimbabwe leadership, our esteemed parents, friends of Athletics Zimbabwe just to mention a few. We heartily appreciate all their endeavours that enabled us to get this far," said Nhubu.
Moving forward, Nhubu said there is need to continue nurturing the athletes since they have proved their capability to reach far.
“It was not a walk into the park because this event is a duplicate of World Athletics Championships since all superpowers in this sport come from Africa. To us this was like we are competing at the World Championships,” he said.
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“From these championships, we have managed to grab quite a number of issues that we need to improve on for a better outlook in future. Among other issues, we learned that we are a powerhouse in field events, so as a federation we need a relook on this. Our relays also need more polishing for us to avoid missing the podium with split seconds. Our preparations would also need holistic approach where everyone involved has to play his or her role.”
