Let’s get Zim playing again
The year has begun pretty much like how 2020 ended — full of uncertainty.
As the second wave of the coronavirus pandemic — a wave more brutal than the first — continues to wreak havoc in Zimbabwe, it’s difficult to see, even for the more optimistic amongst us, where hope will come from. The virus, which just a few weeks before the new year, seemed to be on the wane, has reared its ugly head from the casket of history from which it had been prematurely interred. We have lost workmates, churchmates, acquaintances, fathers, mothers and God forbid, in some cases, children. Like the legendary WWE wrestler, The Undertaker, it has rebounded spectacularly and has its hand at our collective throat, leaving us gasping for breath, pardon the pun.
The effects of Covid-19 continue to flow through the world’s health, educational, financial, and commercial institutions, and the sports ecosystem is no different. True, the greatest collateral damage has been the loss of life, but the damage done extends beyond just the health and vitality of a nation. How do we quantify opportunities missed? The sixth-form student who had waited five years to captain his school rugby team, hopefully make it into the Young Sables, catch the eye of a South African franchise and have a genuine shot at a prorugby career. The young tearaway striker who couldn’t wait to light it up at the Copa Coca-Cola and dazzle scouts with the hope of one day doing the same in the Castle Lager Premier Soccer League.
And at the opposite end of the age spectrum is Clemence Matawu, the former Chicken Inn and Motor Action midfield dynamo who was denied the chance to say goodbye. One of the finest players of the Premier Soccer League era, Matawu wrote his own piece of history in 2017 when he joined an exclusive club of Zimbabwe’s finest players by finishing among the Soccer Stars of the Year finalists for a record breaking sixth time.
The 38-year-old former Warriors player, crowned Soccer-Star of the Year in 2006, had set his sights on a swansong last year, but he found Covid-19 to be no respecter of sentiment nor reputation.
So, for the second time in less than a year, matches and competitions have been cancelled or postponed, disrupting our national sports associations, teams and athletes — as well as the non-stop live sports action fans have come to expect. Administrators are once again trying to navigate the impact and implications of the latest stoppage. The Deloitte Report on the impact of Covid-19 on Sport states: “With the pandemic looking likely to be with us for some time, the entire sports ecosystem will need new ways to deal with threats to financial and business continuity arising from disrupted cash flows, legal and insurance challenges, and possible impacts on longer-term attendances and engagement.”
That the reputable Accounting and Audit firm should assess the impact at a purely business level is understandable for an organisation whose roots run deep in that domain. But the true impact is far greater than just dollars and cents. With a cloud hanging over the Olympics scheduled for July, that cloud is even darker and more ominous in Zimbabwe with the latest spell of inactivity meaning there’s a real prospect that the nation might have no home-based athletes in Tokyo. Whether it’s athletics, soccer or rugby, Zimbabwe could well lose more than just a couple of years of action, but a generation of athletes.
While the Sports and Recreation Commission must be commended for their due care and attention for prioritising the health of our athletes and players in the sports industry, the regulatory authority needs to rise above that and stop acting merely as an appendage of government — there to do the Ministry of Health’s bidding. The SRC must assume the role of custodian of sport whose welfare should be its primary focus and concern. Yes, the health and safety protocols must be instituted and adhered to, but the commission’s concerns must go beyond instituting a ban on sporting activity, but trying to assist our National Sporting Associations to find ways in which they can get back playing again.
The world over, the disruption caused by the pandemic has brought about the growing realisation that Covid-19 is here to stay and there’s a need to adopt, work around it and make a plan! South Africa whose infection rates are the worst on the continent, are leading the way in adapting to the challenges sport is facing. This past weekend, a successful Currie Cup tournament was concluded with the Bulls triumphant at Loftus, while the DStv Premiership is already halfway through the 2020/21 season. What’s clear to see is that; operating models have changed and the transformation of the sports industry as we know it is already underway — Zimbabwe needs to catch up.
Where’s that world-renowned spirit that “Zimbos always make a plan”? Where are the keen minds and scholars that we often boast are a product of a literacy rate amongst the highest in the world? Now is the time for the best minds to come together and figure out how we can get Zimbabwe playing again.