Para-athletes to compete in Dubai
The Namibia National Paralympic Committee (NPC) will be sending two athletes to Dubai for the Fazza Championships that will be held from 20-28 February.
The athletes, Martha Hitekalute and Simon Shihepo, will compete in field events.
The Fazza Championships for the Disabled aim to enhance the social and cultural integration of people with disabilities. Athletes compete in a variety of sports disciplines such as stronglifts, badminton, table tennis (ping-pong), basketball, athletics, archery, boccia and bowling.
Speaking to Nampa on Wednesday, NPC secretary-general Michael Hamukwaya said the athletes to represent the country in Dubai are newcomers and have never competed internationally before.
“We do not have many field event athletes in the country and these championships give us an opportunity to send athletes to this competition where they will be classified as well as competing at an international competition for the first time,” he said.
The two will compete in shot-put and javelin.
“This is a qualifying year for Paralympic Games and it's really important that we have a big pool of athletes who can represent the country,” he added.
Hamukwaya said this would be a challenging year in terms of funding, as the NPC wants to compete in a number of competitions in order for athletes to qualify for the 2020 Paralympic Games in Tokyo, Japan.
Hitekalute was discovered by the NPC team in the //Karas Region during a scouting programme last year, while Shihepo was selected at the NPC national championships.
Coach Barbara Fernandez will accompany the athletes to Dubai.
Their trip is fully sponsored by Agitos Foundation.
NAMPA
The athletes, Martha Hitekalute and Simon Shihepo, will compete in field events.
The Fazza Championships for the Disabled aim to enhance the social and cultural integration of people with disabilities. Athletes compete in a variety of sports disciplines such as stronglifts, badminton, table tennis (ping-pong), basketball, athletics, archery, boccia and bowling.
Speaking to Nampa on Wednesday, NPC secretary-general Michael Hamukwaya said the athletes to represent the country in Dubai are newcomers and have never competed internationally before.
“We do not have many field event athletes in the country and these championships give us an opportunity to send athletes to this competition where they will be classified as well as competing at an international competition for the first time,” he said.
The two will compete in shot-put and javelin.
“This is a qualifying year for Paralympic Games and it's really important that we have a big pool of athletes who can represent the country,” he added.
Hamukwaya said this would be a challenging year in terms of funding, as the NPC wants to compete in a number of competitions in order for athletes to qualify for the 2020 Paralympic Games in Tokyo, Japan.
Hitekalute was discovered by the NPC team in the //Karas Region during a scouting programme last year, while Shihepo was selected at the NPC national championships.
Coach Barbara Fernandez will accompany the athletes to Dubai.
Their trip is fully sponsored by Agitos Foundation.
NAMPA
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