Two-horse race for tennis top post
It is a two-horse race for the Botswana Tennis Association (BTA) presidency as the association goes to the polls in Gaborone tomorrow. In an interesting turn of events, former BTA secretary-general Boikobo Gaolebalwe is challenging incumbent president Oaitse Thipe.
Gaolebalwe previously served two terms between 2009 and 2017 under the BTA executive committee led by former president Nelson Amanze. Dr Khaulani Fichani was roped in until the 2019 elections, where he went headto-head with Thipe. Tefo Tefo defeated Gaolebalwe in 2017 for the vice president-administration position. Gaolebalwe has taken time to regroup and together with his team, they are back to claim glory.
However, Thipe feels he deserves a chance to serve his last term. He said it is interesting that Gaolebalwe and his team are contesting for positions while they have not been active in tennis. He said the team did not even attend the last BTA Annual
General Meeting (AGM).
Thipe’s other committee members Tefo and Ari Kalmari are not seeking another bite at the cherry.
Thipe told
that he wants to finish the job that he started in 2019.
“If given another mandate, I plan to get our players opportunities to play Grand Slams. I want to make sure that by the time my term ends, we have at least 15 weeks of international tennis tournaments. This year, we hosted six international tournaments. Tennis should be played in areas like Kgalagadi and Gantsi where it never existed before,” he said.
Thipe, 42, said the number of coaches and other different structures should be increased across the country. He said the National Tennis Centre would resurface in January to prepare the facility for 10 weeks of professional tournaments for men and women. He added that they are also planning to host International Tennis Federation (ITF) Level Two in 2024 or 2025.
During Thipe’s tenure, BTA won two awards from the Confederation of Africa Tennis (CAT) in 2020 for best development programmes in Africa. In October, BTA scooped another award from ITF for best development in Southern Africa.
For his part, Gaolebalwe said BTA has the potential to reach new heights and make a lasting impact. He said one of his primary motives is to foster the growth of tennis at all levels.
“My plan is to host more than five national tournaments, five development activities, 10 local tournaments and conduct more than 10 Corporate Social Investment (CSI) programmes. I also want to see tennis having more than 500 competitive players countrywide,” he said.
Gaolebalwe said priority areas for his team include player and infrastructure development, promotion, marketing, partnership, collaborations, governance, integrity and supporter engagement.
“I am dedicated to enhancing the quality of coaching and training programmes within our association. This includes investing in professional development for coaches, providing resources for state-of-the-art facilities and promoting innovative training methods,” Gaolebalwe said.
Thipe team:
Vice president-technical: Nonofo Othusitse.
Vice president-administration: Atang Mokgware.
Tournament director: Sadie Kimberly
Facilities maintenance and development: Peter Nthele
Coaching and sport development: Bonno Masisi-Makula
Tournament and administration: Sadie Fourie
Public relations and marketing: Tshepang Tlhankane
Director of finance: To be identified
Gaolebalwe team:
Vice president: administration: Clare Hanani Mosarwa
Vice president: technical: Barulaganye Mmolawa
Coaching and sport development: Millicent Mokubung
Tournaments and competitions: Batisani Khiwa
Finance: Nchidzi Batisani
Facilities maintenance and development: Serwalo Lesolame
Public relations and marketing: Selinah Omphile