When volleyball loves you back
WERE it not for volleyball, Nyengeterai Guyo would have been telling a different story.
The sport has given the 27-year-old a job and love. More could be on the way for a woman who plays volleyball even when heavily pregnant.
“I cannot even start to imagine what my life would have been like without volleyball,” says the Harare City power hitter.
“I met the love of my life at a volleyball tournament in 2008, I was doing Form Two and he was an Upper Six student at Churchill High School.
“The sport also opened employment doors for me as I am employed by the Zimbabwe Republic Police as a sports administrator. All this would not have been possible without volleyball.”
Guyo and hubby Tawanda Pamire have a four-year-old daughter, Miranda, and they are already talking about a future time when she will be the princess of the court.
“Her father and mother are both volleyball enthusiasts and we would love her to follow in our footsteps too,” says Pamire.
Pamire believes women need to be given all the support they need when pursuing their sporting dreams.
“I can simply say sport is a basic human right and as men I wish to see us giving our women greater access and opportunity to participate in sport.
“I am aware that there are some cultural and social challenges to be addressed but giving them support remains the starting point.
“Personally I chose to support and believe in my wife and like any other sector we had our goals set and kept working towards them. I’m happy to report that it has been a lovely journey.”
Pamire will have to do some babysitting as Guyo and Harare City step up preparations for this month’s Zone XI Club Championships from November 30 to December 8 in Durban, South Africa.
“It will not be an easy tournament but we are fired up,” says Guyo.
“Being part of a team with such rich history and plying my trade is such a big league, like that, was really surreal.”
Despite playing just 11 games due to his midseason move, Maturure did enough to make an instant impact at the Soweto giants. The 28-year-old finished with 160 points, 24 assists and six blocks; earning himself a Most Valuable Player award for his club and a place on the league’s All-Star team. Also impressive were the improvements in his game.
“When I was playing here in Zimbabwe, there were so many distractions, things to do, people to visit and places to go,” said the small forward. “However, in South Africa basketball was all I did; I would wake up in the morning and go to the gym, train, rest and then train again. I believe such a lifestyle really helped up my game;
“One of the major highlights, for me in SA was how I managed to up my game. Back home, I had never really been rated a perimeter shooter, but I remember in this one game shooting four straight three-pointers.
“I managed to incorporate such little things into my game, and feel more of a well-rounded player for it,” he said. From the free-throw line, Maturure shot an impressive 73 percent from 33 free throws; while making a career high 19 three-pointers.
The improvements were not isolated to his offensive game alone, as Maturure finished the season with 17 defensive rebounds and six blocks.