The 11th edition of the AUSC Region 5 Games concluded on Sunday.

Namibia finished second overall behind South Africa, who were crowned the overall winners of this year’s edition.

South Africa dominated the medal standings, collecting a total of 143 medals, made up of 65 gold, 44 silver and 34 bronze medals. 

Host nation Namibia delivered a commendable performance on home soil, amassing 90 medals, consisting of 24 gold, 34 silver and 32 bronze. Securing third place was Zimbabwe, who put up a strong fight throughout the just-ended youth games, finishing with 89 medals 22 gold, 34 silver and 33 bronze.

Angola came in fourth with a total of 43 medals, which included 17 gold, 11 silver and 15 bronze. Botswana, Namibia’s neighbours, claimed fifth place with 58 medals, comprising 16 gold, 15 silver and an impressive 27 bronze.

Meanwhile, Zambia finished sixth after collecting 29 medals – eight gold, eight silver and 13 bronze. 

Malawi secured seventh position with 29 medals as well, made up of six gold, 12 silver and 11 bronze.

Mozambique followed in eighth with 19 medals, comprising six gold, four silver and nine bronze. 

Lesotho finished ninth with 12 medals, made up of two gold, three silver and seven bronze. Trailing the standings was Eswatini, who managed to bag just five medals, one gold, two silver and two bronze.

Reacting to the final standings, Namibia Sport Commission chief administrator Freddy Mwiya expressed satisfaction with the host nation’s strong showing.

“For the first time in a long while, we’ve seen a shift in how Namibia competes at this competition. We demonstrated that we are a force to be reckoned with – both by hosting the games and with the number of medals we collected. I am overall happy with how the country performed,” he said. 

-mkambukwe@nepc.com.na