Edugate Academy gears up for athletics season

Ester Kamati

Sporting culture is widely celebrated in local schools in Namibia, and Edugate Academy is no exception.

The annual athletics event is one such platform where the mutual love for school sport merges with school spirit to create hype around the sporting season.

Jurita Potgieter, who is responsible for sport at the Otjiwarongo-based school, shared with The Zone that Edugate Academy has already started with their pre-season programme.

The annual athletics programme comprises of such events like long jump, high jump, hurdles, javelin, discus, shot put, sprints and middle- and long-distance running.

“At Edugate it is important for us to give children as many possibilities as possible,” said Potgieter. The season, which normally starts in October gives opportunities for the scholars to be exposed to different sport environments, as well as expose them to many opportunities.

The Securitas interhouse, which normally takes place in October, is followed by the zonals, northern athletics, regionals and Napso athletics, followed by the Securitas prestige athletics competition. This gives the athletes that qualified for the nationals the platform to be scouted and possibly join the Cossasa team.

Through a “constant process of motivating”, the Edugate Academy team tries their utmost to keep sport enjoyable, in order to keep scholars interested.

“Our school motto is training and being,” added Potgieter, who commended the great teachers and coaches at the school for constantly conveying this motto.

Before the finals of the athletics season, the athletes get at least 18 weeks to train, including for the interhouse competition, which all learners are obligated to take part in. The school takes pride in their sprinters, hurdlers and throwers, amongst others, who did extremely well this year.

Seven of the school athletes were part of the Namibian team.