Majoni set to go faster
MOLEEN MAJONI has been dominating the local wheelchair racing scene for some time now and looks set to put daylight between herself and the rest of the pack.
The 35-year-old Majoni is this week expected to take delivery of two wheelchairs donated by the Challenged Athletes Foundation (CAF), an American organisation that assist disabled sports persons.
And she reckons with the new wheels there is no way she cannot go faster.
“Previously I was using archaic wheelchairs and in one local race I came second not because I wasn’t fast enough but because I had worn out tires.
“The state of the art racing chairs have carbon wheels while the old ones have spokes which make them heavier to push. My racing times can only get better with such modern equipment,” said Majoni.
The athlete could have taken delivery of the wheelchairs much earlier but found herself stuck after the Zimbabwe Revenue Authority demanded duty amounting to $2 600. “I’m overwhelmed with having won this grant because CAF is an American based organisation and the chances of any African person to receive a grant were slim because they are a lot of challenged athletes in America as it is. “The only challenge I faced was with ZIMRA who had demanded $1 300 as duty for each wheelchair. However, I engaged the Ministry of Sports and Recreation and should be collecting the racing chairs at the Harare International Airport on Tuesday,” she said. Majoni, who recently won the Outeniqua race in South Africa, looks set to get a feel of her new racing chairs and next weekend’s PPC Msasa 21km marathon. “Having state of the art racing chairs alone is not enough because one has to prepare thoroughly and that is what I intend to do. “Hopefully I will win the PPC race before focusing on the several international races that I have lined up. The international races are always special for an athlete because one will be representing the country,” said Majoni.