Organisers of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games held an operational test event for rugby sevens on Thursday, with 95 days before the first match of the tournament on 26 July.

The event was held at Tokyo Stadium, which will host all six days of action during the Games and was the site of the opening match of the hugely successful Rugby World Cup 2019.

Organisers from the Tokyo 2020 Organising Committee and the Japanese Rugby Football Union tested a variety of operational measures around exhibition matches featuring players from Japan’s men’s and women’s national sevens teams, albeit with no fans in attendance.

According to a statement from the event organisers obtained by ZANIS sports, the match-day operations were simulated as they will be during the Olympics, complete with match officials, ground staff, the teams being announced on the stadium speakers and music being played after every try.

The event also provided organisers with another chance to test out COVID-19 countermeasures, including players wearing masks during the warm-up, all areas being frequently disinfected and the use of a small vehicle to return stray balls to the field of play.

The Japanese players on show are currently within their own training bubble and were kept separate from media and officials during the event.

The operational testing went off without a hitch, and Tokyo 2020 Deputy Executive Director Yasuo Mori was pleased with the outcome: “This is the first occasion where we have worked as one team at this rugby event.

“ We have been able to share information and coordinate accordingly. This has been the biggest learning from this event.”

Rugby sevens is a key priority for World Rugby and its Olympic debut at the Rio 2016 Games had an unmistakable effect on the sport, attracting an estimated 30 million new fans globally.

The sport is one of the most hotly anticipated events of the Tokyo Games, following the outstanding success of Rugby World Cup 2019 in Japan and the performance of the Japan men’s sevens team at Rio, where they beat the likes of New Zealand and France on the way to a fourth-placed finish.

“We are massively excited about being back in Japan.

“It is a great opportunity for us. We know that a successful rugby sevens program in the Olympics is a great showcase for our sport, a great driver for future fans and players and is an inspirational pathway.

“ We know Japan will be great hosts, no matter what the circumstances, ” said World Rugby Chief Executive Alan Gilpin.

To ensure teams are as best prepared as possible for the Olympic Games, World Rugby is investing US$4 million into qualified unions’ sevens programmes and high-performance preparation events as the teams prepare for Tokyo.

The final two women’s and one men’s team will seal their place in Tokyo during the Repechage – the final Olympic qualification event – in Monaco on 19-20 June.

The Lusaka City Council (LCC) has switched off traffic lights at Great East and Lufubu roads’ Great East and Lufubu roads.

The move has been necessitated to mitigate the traffic build up that has been observed at the junction during peak hours and the right turn into East Park Mall has been closed to ensure safety of road users.

LCC Assistant Public Relations Manager Thelma Mbewe highlights in a statement obtained by ZANIS that the measures have been put in place to the smooth flow of traffic following the newly constructed Arcades fly over bridge constructed under the Lusaka Decongestion Project.

“Motorists coming from the western direction heading east that want to access the mall should do so from the Arcades traffic circle,” she said.

She added that the authority has a mandate to maintain safety of the general public adding that all abide by the set road rules.

Vice President Inonge Wina says there is need for government and traditional leaders to maintain a close working relationship if the country is to develop.

Mrs Wina said the country can achieve more development when traditional leaders work closely with government.

Mrs Wina was speaking when she paid a courtesy call of Chief Kapijimpanga of the Kaonde people in Solwezi today.

ZANIS reports that the Vice President also emphasized on the need for all stakeholders to play their role in maintaining peace and singled out traditional leaders as key in maintaining peace ahead of the August 12 general elections.

“As elections approach, we expect traditional leaders to ensure peace before, during and after elections so that the country can continue being a beacon of peace that it is known for,” Ms Wina said.

Meanwhile Chief Kapijimpanga has commended government for the efforts made in delivering development to all parts of the country.

He cited education and health as some of the sectors that have received attention and thus opened up then district to new opportunities.

“Your honor, we are grateful to government for opening up Solwezi to development. We are glad that we have received a fair share of development in schools, health posts which are servicing our people,” Chief Kapijimpanga said.

Chief Kapijimpanga pledged to support government in maintaining peace among his people as the country heads to the polls.

And speaking when she separately met ten sub chiefs from Kapijimpanga area, Ms Wina encouraged them to work with government because it is important for development.

Ms Wina said some areas have lagged behind in development because people have refused to work with government.

‘We have had challenges in some areas because people have refused to work with government, therefore encourage your people to work with us as government and not look at us as a political party,” Ms Wina said.

She also called on the sub chiefs to help the party identify candidates that will represent people fairly once elected.

And Sub chief Mbonge who spoke on behalf of the others, expressed optimism that President Edgar Lungu will win the forthcoming elections.

Sub chief Mbonge said the President has to retain the seat so that he completes all the developmental projects he has started.

“We are hopeful that President Edgar Lungu will retain the seat so that he continues with the developmental projects he has started,” he said.

He appealed to government to consider sub chiefs for various empowerment programmes being implemented to help improve their livelihoods.

The Vice President is in Northwestern province for a three day working visit and is expected to inspect developmental projects in Kalumbila, Ikelenge, Mwinilunga and Kasempa districts as well as meet traditional leaders and party officials.

Football Association of Zambia (FAZ) has called on all grassroots coaches especially those in schools to get trained and acquire coaching e-licenses in order to be professional.

FAZ coach education instructor, Chris Chibuye said the new system adopted requires that all coaches must be trained in order to be recognized.

“Let them develop their abilities… what they are teaching now is wrong because they have not gone through training in order to be able to be coach,” Chibuye said.

He added that untrained coaches will in the long run lose their jobs even though they have the potential because FAZ will soon stop allowing anyone to coach unless they are qualified.

ZANIS sports in Solwezi reports Chibuye said in an interview that professional coaches bring up skilled and professional footballers.

“Young players passing through qualified coaches will reach high levels in the game and play in clubs in the country and outside as international professional players… they can also play in the national team and will play better than the other players we have seen in the past, ” he said.

Chibuye noted that coaching licenses are now mandatory as no one will be allowed to coach anywhere where there is organised football, not even in schools or compounds without a license.

He said these are regulations by FAZ and FIFA who advised that every coach in grassroots football must be qualified.

“Coaching is a profession and E-license course is the entry point in which we teach the fundamentals of coaching the basics, then they can develop to other higher licenses,” Chibuye said.

FAZ is undertaking a provincial programme throughout the country to train football coaches.

Currently the football body is in in North-western province where about 80 aspiring couches are being trained.

Minister of Local Government Charles Banda says the government remains resolute to rehabilitate feeder roads countrywide to spur social and economic development.

He explained that the government under his ministry will not relent in improving the state of feeder roads as they contribute greatly to economic development.

ZANIS reports that Dr Banda made the remarks in parliament today, when responding to a question from Chinsali Member of Parliament, Kalalwe Mukosa, who wanted to know whether government has plans to rehabilitate feeder roads in Chinsali District, Muchinga, during the session for oral answers.

“Muchinga like any other province in the country is receiving its fair share of feeder roads and works are in progress. We are constructing and rehabilitating more roads, currently 80 kilometers of the rehabilitation works in the province are done,” he responded.

Of the K119.6 billion for 2021 National budget, the government allocated over K6.2 billion for Road Infrastructure development in the country.