Windhoek
Namibian athletes that participated in the recent Confederation of Schools Sport Associations of Southern Africa (COSSASA) Ball Games in Botswana delivered a good account of themselves to claim a podium finish at the games.
Namibia claimed third place finishing behind Zimbabwe who scooped second spot. Hosts Botswana were the overall winners of the championship. Lesotho took fourth place.
The games were spread across different sporting codes including volleyball, football, netball, rugby and tennis. Angola, South Africa, Swaziland and Mozambique did not attend the games due to financial challenges.
President of the Botswana Integrated Sports Association (BISA), Joshua Gaotlhobogwe, told Monitor Sport that the competition went well.
He said despite that, some countries did not bring teams that were good for competition. “Botswana teams prepared well and were ready for the games. We knew that as hosts, a lot is at stake. Most countries came here gunning for us and we had to be on top,” he said.
Gaotlhobogwe said they did not experience much hiccups, but added that it is human nature to have some challenges along the way. When asked about other countries such as South Africa and Mozambique that did not attend the COSSASA games, Gaotlhobogwe pinned that on financial challenges amongst other things.
He said in South Africa there is confusion as to which sporting body is responsible for COSSASA. “As it was the case with Lesotho, their funding was approved on Monday but the competition was starting on Wednesday. Hence they came late to the competition,” said Gaotlhobogwe.
Meanwhile, he said the Botswana government confirmed hosting the games late and that made preparations difficult, adding that they were forced to organise the games under pressure.
He said for COSSASA games to be held when schools are not closed was a challenge when it came to accommodation, forcing them to put up the guests in hotels which was an expensive process. The 2017 COSSASA games will be held in Lesotho. – Mmegi Online