Zim reps at the Tokyo Olympics

Mehluli Sibanda, Senior Sports Reporter
THE biggest sporting event in the world, the Olympics officially got underway in Tokyo, Japan on Friday.

Until 8 August, sporting fans all over the world will be glued to television screens to catch some of the action at the Olympics.

Zimbabwe will be represented by five athletes, two swimmers, one sprint athlete, golfer and rower. The swimming duo of Donata Katai and Peter Wetzlar, sprinter Ngoni Makusha, golfer Scott Vincent as well as rower Peter Purcell-Gilpin are carrying Zimbabwe’s hopes at this year’s Olympics. Vincent and Purcell-Gilpin secured direct qualification to the Olympics while the other three are in Japan on universality slots.

In terms of team size, this one of the smallest ever teams sent by Zimbabwe to the Olympics. At the 2016 Rio Olympics, Zimbabwe sent a delegation of 57 to Brazil, these being 31 athletes and 26 officials. The athletes were nine men and 22 women that competed in seven different sports. It was the nation’s largest ever delegation sent to the Olympics, a huge difference to the seven athletes who attended the London Olympics four years earlier.

In this week’s edition of Sunday Life, we take a look at all the five athletes as listed below

Scott Vincent Age: 29
Event: Golf
Continental and international career: Turned professional in 2015
Olympic ranking: 54
Competition dates: 29 July to 1 August (Kasumigaseki Country Club)

Peter Wetzlar Age: 24
Event: swimming 100m freestyle
Personal best: 50.50 seconds
Continental and international career: Fina World Championships 2019 (Korea), African Games 2019 (Morocco), Fina World Championships 2015 (Singapore), African Games 2015 (Congo), Fina World Short Course Championships 2014 (Qatar), African Youth Games 2014 (Botswana), AUSC Region 5 Games (Zimbabwe bronze 50m freestyle), African Junior Championships 2013 (Zambia, bronze 50m freestyle), Africa Junior Championships 2011 (Nigeria)

Peter Purcell-Gilpin Age: 26
Event: rowing
Continental and international career: African Olympic Qualification Regatta 2019 (Tunisia)
World Virtual Rowing Championships 2021, XXXV Memorial Paolo D’ Aloja Regatta 2021 (Italy)
Competition dates: 23-30 July (Sea Forest Waterway)

Ngoni Makusha Age: 27
Event: 100m sprint athletics
Personal best: 10.17 seconds
Continental and international career: African Games 2019 (Morocco), Memorial Geert Rasschaert 2019 (Belgium), Rednit Mauritius International Meet 2018 (Mauritius), African Championships 2016 (South Africa), Southern African Athletics Championships 2019 (Mauritius, gold 100m, gold 200m), World relays 2021(Poland).
Competition dates: 31 July to 1 August (Olympic Stadium)

Donata Katai Age: 17
Event: swimming 100m backstroke
Personal best: 1.04.63
Continental and international career: Fina Junior World Championships 2019 (Hungary), Africa Junior Swimming Championships 2019 (Tunisia),
Competition dates: 25-27 July (Tokyo Aquatics Centre)

@Mdawini_29