Hilma Nalupe
Limba Mupetami recently bagged the Sport Journalist of the Year (print media) award at the Namibia Annual Sport Awards (NASA) in Ongwediva, an accolade she has scooped numerous times.
Her first nomination was in 2018, followed by another in 2019, when she won the Print category. Later, she was nominated for the Regional Annual Sport Awards (RASA) Awards but did not win, which she describes as a learning curve.
In 2021, when the Sport Journalist of the Year, Digital and Broadcasting categories were introduced at the NASA, Mupetami won both. In 2024, she won the Sport Journalist of the Year (Print) again, earning herself another RASA nomination, and now in 2025, she has clinched the Print title once more.
She said this year’s win felt different. “It is a reminder that consistency matters and that growth is ongoing. Each award carries its own emotional weight, but this one feels like a reaffirmation of purpose,” said Mupetami. The scribe began her journalism journey about 14 years ago, starting at The Namibian before moving to Namibia Media Holdings, where she covered almost every beat, including entertainment, community affairs and human-interest stories.
Mupetami always had a soft spot for community affairs. Even as a sports reporter, she naturally gravitates toward the road-to-riches stories of athletes overcoming challenges. Sport reporting, she explained felt almost inevitable for her. Having played football, spending time around athletes and constantly hearing their triumphs, heartbreaks, and politics, she realised those voices deserved a platform, a path that led her directly into sports journalism.
When asked what contributed most to securing another win, she keeps it simple: work ethic.
“I chase stories relentlessly and ask questions others tiptoe around. I pay attention to details and love being among the first to break news. More than anything, I live and breathe sport, my days, nights, and weekends revolve around it,” said Mupetami.
Challenges
She said sports journalists in Namibia face several challenges, including censorship, which makes it difficult to obtain timely, accurate, and transparent information.
When it comes to handling criticism or pushback, Mupetami simply said she keeps going. She listens, learns, and moves forward. She adds that she appreciates reactions to her stories because it shows people are paying attention. As a prominent female voice in a male-dominated field, her journey came with its own assumptions. “Some people initially assumed I didn’t understand sport, but I actively competed,” she said.
She said she knows the feeling of preparing, winning, losing, and navigating politics around sport.
“I admit, I don’t know everything, but I would like to believe that I am very teachable,” shared the journalist.
She hopes her reporting has shifted perceptions, humanised athletes, brought them closer to the people who admire them, and pushed administrators to do better.
Growth
Mupetami said sport journalism in Namibia has grown significantly during her career, noting that more women are entering the field, producing, hosting podcasts, and reporting.
Looking ahead, her goals include training and mentoring upcoming journalists. She wants to blend old-school journalism values with new-school creativity. At the core, she believes journalism is a service and not just a job. But she added that it must also be a service that puts bread on the table and changes her life as a journalist, just as much as it changes the life of an athlete when he or she wins gold.