Following the disappointing 2020 MTC National Youth Games which were embarrassingly characterised by substandard transport, food and accommodation for the participating athletes and officials, the Namibia Sports Commission (NSC) has promised to do better this time around.
Speaking to this publication yesterday, NSC marketing officer Chalo Chainda said the commission and its sponsor MTC learned valuable lessons from the last edition of the youth games held at Rietfontein in the Otjozondjupa region.
Chainda explained that unlike the last time when participating athletes and officials were forced to sleep in filthy rooms and were exposed to unhealthy food at the Rietfontein Training Centre, this time around athletes and officials will be offered top-rate accommodation.
Regional support staff will also now form part of the local organising committee for the games.
This year’s games are scheduled to take place at Windhoek’s Independence stadium and the University of Namibia (Unam) from 11 to 17 December 2022.
As customary, the games will include sports codes such as basketball, boxing, football, tennis, volleyball and netball.
“I can promise you that the event will be different this year, as we intend to have a transparent and inclusive event. We will have main sponsors fully involved in the day-to-day running of the event and we will also include a member from all participating sports codes as part of the local organising committee. NSC staff will also be assisting in various capacities,” said Chainda.
“Accommodation for the athletes would be top-class this time around, as athletes would be accommodated at Unam. Technical members will be lodging at the Emona Estate, which is a top-class facility. We are also planning on having catering services that are top-class to ensure that everything is done in the right manner and in a conducive way.”
He added that they are currently in talks with various sports codes that would like to be added to the 2022 Youth Games roster.
“This year, we are also looking at increasing the number of participants, which means we have to add more sporting disciplines to our list. We have so far added gymnastics and we have asked more to come on board.”
– mkambukwe@nepc.com.na