Cheerleading becomes BNSC’s newest baby
After a three-year wait, the Botswana Cheerleading Federation (BCF) has attained full Botswana National Sport Commission (BNSC) affiliation. BCF had submitted a formal request to affiliate with the BNSC in 2018, but had to wait three years after meeting the requirements. The newest sporting body becomes the 43rd member of the Commission, with BCF having been in existence for seven years.
BCF has said in a statement that it
had been making strides since its formation, through youth development. The federation has been affiliated with the Botswana National Olympic Committee (BNOC) and the International Cheerleading Union (ICU) in 2020 and 2016 respectively whilst is in the process of affiliating with the World Majorettes Federation (WMF). “BCF has been invited several times to perform at the world championships, but decided to focus on growing the sport in Botswana and managed to increase clubs from five to 14.
The increase in clubs was a step in the right direction as the federation
successfully hosted the first ever national championships in 2020. The hosting of the championships was one of the primary requirements in the federation’s process of affiliating with both the BNSC and BNOC. With the help of these two bodies, BCF is looking at competing regionally and internationally,” the statement reads.
Speaking to Mmegi Sport, BCF president, Neo Selwe admitted that it would be difficult to compete internationally due to the suspension of sports locally, but said they were eyeing to make their debut in September.
“There is a tournament this September;
it is a virtual tournament so we will not need to travel.
It is the World Championship and we were hoping to take part in it. But it is going to be difficult to participate since we can’t train, so we will need time to condition the players. For us, we would be able to participate rather than compete so we get a better perspective of the sport on an international level,” she said. Meanwhile, Chris Murphy Jinde has replaced expelled Tony Petrus as the secretary-general on a full-time basis. Jinde has been holding the position on an interim basis since the expulsion of Petrus in February.