The Sunday News
Phineas Mukwazo
IT was refreshing to arrive at White City Stadium, the country ceremonial home of athletics, last Saturday morning to a hive of activity prior to the start of the second leg JM Busha Track and Field Triangular Series.
The first leg was held in Harare last month and it attracted 400 runners while 500 athletes from all over the country were at White City Stadium representing institutions, schools, and clubs such as Black Rhinos, ZRP Bulawayo and ZRP Harare, Masvingo Academy, Belvedere Teachers’ College, Prince Edwards, Sikhulile High, Zim Plants, Taflow, Sprint King, Kuwadzana High, Amen Academy, LM Academy, Sparrows, Mosi Striders, ZRP Midlands, Ngezi Platinum, Yadah, Depaul, Millenium, ZRP PPU, ZRP Mash Central, Crackers’ Academy, Successful Striders, Vikings, SU Buchwa, Bindura, Mr Pace, ZRP Support Unit, Jumbo, ZRP Mash West, Yadah B, Yadah A, Hamilton, ZRP Gweru, Tsanzaguru, Blanket Mine and Independents.
The local athletics “super brands’’ such as crack 5000m runner Tendai Zimuto, Wellington Warevi the 1500m king, Ngoni Makusha, the leading 100m and 200m athlete, Nigel Tom, who won both the Harare and the Bulawayo legs in the 400m, Levison Mafuwa, Trust Hove (both contenders for the 1500m men crown), Kenneth Chibwana (200m), Victor Mathuthu (Long Jump), Bekisisa Tshuma (long jump and triple jump), and Bertha Chikanga the 3000m, were all there.
Warevi, Makusha and Tom represented the country at the African Senior Championships in Durban last year. But whenever one faces so-called “super brands’’ there is no doubt that only ingenuity, courage, aggressiveness and determination becomes effective ammunition that can bring down an opponent who is 200 times better than you and it was all there at White City. No sooner had the proceedings of the day started than all that was witnessed on a cool day fit for the occasion.
It was very refreshing to witness a well-attended athletics meet, as the last time we saw all this hype was during the 2014 Region Five Games at the same venue. What a way out it was for even better talent identification, grooming and all round development of athletics.
However, sadly, and virtually absent at what later proved to be a high tempo, competitive outing for the runners, throwers, and jumpers, and worthy entertainment for the spectators, was lack of adequate coverage from both the print and electronic media.
“The event was well attended and athletes showed great character. Stiff competition was experienced because athletes posted good times, distance and heights, because every athlete wanted to be in the finals,’’ said Manuel Mpofu, the chairperson of the Bulawayo Athletics Board who hosted the event. The Series is an open event with youth, juniors and seniors as targets, with all heats being finals, is being held between the capital and the City of Kings. The final, which will feature the top 16 athletes based on points accumulated over the first two legs will meet at the National Sports Stadium in Harare on 25 May for the final event.
Ahead of the finals the first, second, third and fourth placed athletes accumulated 32, 30, 28 26 points going downwards to as low as 1 point for the least placed, over the series events.
Already Tom, Makusha and Warevi, who have won in Harare and Bulawayo are favourites to walk away with the bacon.
Others such as Kenneth Chibwana, Chikanga, Tinotenda Matienga, and field events specialists Tshuma, Mathuthu, Sydney Nyoni, and Dumezweni Dube, who have accumulated as much points stand a chance of being rewarded financially for finishing in the top three.
Top three athletes in each category will get monetary rewards, a first for the track and field events which rarely attracts sponsorship in this country, courtesy of the sponsors JM Busha.
Below some of the favourites from selected categories:
100 men
N Makusha, 64 pts
I Vambe, 54 pts
200men
N Makusha, 62 points
D Kamugeremu, 52 pts
D Kapandura, 56 pts
100m women
A Agostinyo, 60 pts
K Mudembo, 52 pts
M Zuze, 52 pts
200m women
K Mudambo, 58 pts
S Kayazinga, 54 pts
R Maseko, 48 pts
400m men
N Tom, 64 pts
A Chibhazaza, 50 pts
M Tumba, 42 pts
400m Women
V Maisvorera, 64 pts
P Ngwenya, 60 pts
800m men
L Mapfuwa, 56pts
T Maphosa, 48 pts
N Mutsetse, 32 pts
800m women
V Maisvorewa, 64 pts
R Ngadu, 50 pts
1500m men
W Warevi, 64 pts
L Mupfuwa, 50 pts
T Hove, 56 pts
1500m women
B Tsabasvi, 58 pts
F Tsakura, 52 pts
M Mudyiravanji, 32 pts
3000m women
R Magomo, 62 pts
B Chikanga, 62 pts
5000m men
T Zimuto, 62 pts
M Tarakinyo 62 pts.
