Maurice Kambukwe
According to Solly Duiker, the national coordinator of the Namibia Schools Sports Union (NSSU), the return of school sports activities on a grand scale for this year will largely depend on the guidance and directives from the various government authorities.
As is the case with almost all sport activities worldwide, local schools sport activities were equally hamstrung by the deadly Covid-19 pandemic, which forced the premature closure of schools and many other institutions countrywide.
Consequently, all schools sporting activities also came to a complete standstill, along with the untimed closure of schools as part of Namibia’s many health precautionary steps against the spread of the coronavirus disease.
While some secondary schools are slowly returning to normalcy as learners are allowed to return to classrooms under strict health measures such as the compulsory wearing of mask and uninterrupted use of hands sanitisers, Duiker however said the return of school sports on a larger scale remains in doubt for now.
He added that if they do get a green light from government, then some activities could possibly take place this year.
“We will have to wait for all students to get back to school for us to start planning. For now, only the grade 11 and 12 learners have resumed with face-to-face classes. At this point, we won’t be sending athletes out of the country, which usually requires a lot of funding. We are just waiting for every learner to return to school so that we can kick start with activities, but of course provided government gives us the green light to do so.”
-mkambukwe@nepc.com.na