Chief of Mission for the Zambian team participating at the 2016 Olympic Games in Brazil, Boniface Kambikambi has described the performance of the Zambian athletics as disappointing.
Kambikambi said the athletes have not performed to the expectations of the National Olympic Committee of Zambia (NOCZ).
This is according to a statement issued to ZANIS Sports in Lusaka today by First Secretary for Press at the Zambian Embassy in Brazil Patson Chilemba.
Kambikambi pointed out that despite being physically prepared, the athletes lacked the psychological aspect to pull through to the next level of the games.
He however said more needs to be done in future tournaments by ensuring that the athletes are psychologically prepared by exposing them to many international competitions.
The Zambian athletes that have so far bowed out of the Rio 2016 Olympic Games are Judoka Mathews Punza, Middleweight Boxer Ben Muziyo and Female swimmer Jade Howard
Others are 400 meters African female champion Kabange Mupopo, male swimmer Ralph Goviea and 100 meters male runner Gerald Phiri.
Mr. Kambikambi is hopeful that the only remaining Zambian participant at the Olympics Jordan Chipangano will do well in his marathon race.
Psychological preparation is good, no doubt about that, but I think our country needs far much more than that if we are to start reaping medals at the Olympics. Success will have to start from investing heavily in setting up quality sport-infrastructure starting from Primary school level and throughout tertiary education….especially in government-run schools!! And this is just one of the measures to take.
Things will change now with new sports minister Kalusha Bwalya.
Next story please
How can they do well when theres no sports infrastructure in the country you must be dreaming to think that our athleties where going to do well at the Olympics
Same old story, we did not prepare well. The saying goes you reap what you sow. Zambians we joke a lot and expect results to drop like manna from heaven. All these party cadres are celebrating but having arms forded expecting good results from the Government. Unless we learn to work hard, invest in sports infrastructure at primary, secondary and tertiary education level we still have a long way to go. In those days each Secondary School had a well qualified sports master whose sole purpose was just that to train pupils in athletics and other sports disciplines. Is this still the case to day? I doubt. Our friends plan for the Olympics 10 years ahead. Talent should be identified at a young age and then developed to international standards. Once we tap such talent lets have a special…
Just like we have technical Secondary Schools let’s have a special secondary School in each province with state of the art sports infrastructure where boys and girls who excel in athletics can be persuaded to go. They can later be trained by qualified people and then go on to colleges and learning institutions with a similar bias. Special bursaries should be provided to such pupils so that they know they have a future. These days it does not pay to focus on sports because at the end of the day you loose out so it’s better to concentrate on the academic side. A lot needs to be done.
If you Mr Kambikambi, Mrs Moyo and Hazel can leave the young trained people to run National Olympic Committed, things would improve. But as long as the three of you including your Clement Chileshe keep frustrating other board members and just wanting you to be on the helm of that body, nothing will happen. Please mwakula and you have eaten pafula. Cant you stop it. We are tired of seeing Mrs Moyo’s children kuma Olympic games. You make us sick.
When Mupopo qualified in the semis a few days ago , the message from sports council of Zambia was that Mupopo was focused and that is why she qualified. You can imagine how the other athletes who failed earlier felt from the statement .Now that she has failed, has the ‘focus’ from Mupopo evaporated?
Good question