NAAZ prepares for International meets
THE National Athletics Associations of Zimbabwe have intensified preparations for international events that include the World Athletics Championships set for London in August, the African Junior Championships in Algeria in July and the World Youth Championships penciled in for Kenya in June amid high expectations that for the first time the country might send full men and women’s marathon teams to the World Champs.
Already a number of young upcoming athletes have reached and surpassed the set entry standards for both the Africa Junior and World Youth championships. Vimbai Maisoreva with a season best time of 2 minutes 13,47 seconds has already surpassed the entry standards of 2:13,50 in the 800m for the World Youth Games, while Kundai Maguranyanga has made it for the Junior Championships in the boys’ 200m with a season best time of 21,73 seconds beating the entry point by 0.11 secs.
Dickson Kapandura, Junior Boys 100m, has also run 10:82 which is inside the 10:84, a requirement for one to participate at the World Junior Champs while 800m runner Kelvin Chuku is also eligible to participate at the same event after he clocked 1:50,37 beating the qualifying time of 1:51,5.
Agostino Alice youth girls 100m, with season best time of 12.94secs, is closer the qualifying time of 12.0 seconds, so is 400m specialist Nomatter Kapfudzaruwa who notched 57:84, against the qualifying time of 55:44.
Javelin thrower James Mutenji’s ‘s 52,49 throw beat the 61m which is the passport to the World Junior Champs.
Ngoni Makusha, who represented Zimbabwe at the African Senior Championships in the 100m Snr Men has a season best 10.69sec well out of the 10.12, in the 200m. His best time is 20,44sec.
Among the notable athletes outside the country’s borders the National Athletics Association of Zimbabwe is monitoring is 800m specialist Nyasha Mutsetse, who is at the High Performance Camp in Botswana, and was also in Durban last year, and USA-based Alfred Chawonza, who has bettered the 800m the World youth champs time of 1:54,00 with a season best time of 1:53.85.
There is also Donovan Mutariswa who is based at a High Performance Centre in South Africa who has qualified for the Youth Worlds’ 200m with a season best 21,29sec. The qualifying standard is 21:80.
“We have boys and girls listed as youth and juniors who have either reached the set entry standards or are very close to qualification in their events and we are assisting them to work towards the improvement and polishing of the performances for the championships,’’ said an optimistic Phakamile Lisimati, the NAAZ Director of Talent Identification, and Coaching in response to written questions last week.
Lisimati said the Association was also in touch with Zimbabwean athletes based abroad, and those who made Team Zimbabwe to the continental senior champs last year, as they endeavour to come up with strong representative teams for the international events.
“We have a good number of athletes based all over the world who are also working towards qualifying for either Kenya, Algeria or London whom we are communicating with through either their schools, colleges or coaches on all necessary logistical assistance we can provide from this end. The crop of athletes sent to Durban last year is still actively in the sport and as we speak are working hard to compete at the forth coming Sourthen Region Senior Championships which Zimbabwe will host in Harare in June.
“We have a team of senior athletes currently camped with specialist coaches at the Bindura University of Science Education and will decamp after competing at the Gaborone international meet on 29 April (yesterday). Among those senior athletes are the local youth and juniors who have qualified for either Algeria or Kenya as we have to keep them in constant training and monitoring,’’ said Lisimati, adding that they were in touch with overseas-based athletes.
“The Coaching Department and office secretariat is in constant communication on the competitions and plans the athletes seek to use for their qualification.
“Can I also take this opportunity to let you know that as an Association and the Department of Talent Identification and Coaching we have closed the RIO page (Olympic Games in Brazil) and now focusing on Tokyo 2020 as our primary goal, hence our focus on upcoming Juniors and seniors to aim at that goal.
“London is not reachable anymore for any athlete still to reach their PB or Seasonal Best Performances and this is a realistic goal for both coaches and athletes and NAAZ,’’ he said.
Lisimati also revealed that Zimbabwe, might, for the first time, send full marathon teams for both men and women to London.
Milane Matende and Rutendo Nyahora might accompany their male counterparts Cuthbert Nyasango, Cephas Pasimpamire, Pardon Ndlovu and Gilbert Mutandiro, who have all notched qualifying times for London 2017.
“I think its high time the team of marathon runners produce very good results as we have in the past few years shown great improvements in this department where for the first time Zimbabwe sent a full team of runners to China, Beijing and then to Rio. Now the women have also come up with two ladies already qualified for London and we might probably for the first time have both men and women full teams,’’ said Lisimati.