Sports ministry gears for Tokyo

The ministry of sport is hard at work trying to roll out a programme called Namibia Excellence School Academies (NESA) in order to identify and groom talent in the regions. This was announced by the minister of sport, Erastus Uutoni, yesterday when he welcomed back the 30 athletes who competed at the recently ended 2018 Commonwealth Games in Australia. Uutoni said that the ministry was aware that the success of athletes mainly depends on preparations and that the poor state of sport facilities in Namibia had been noted. “One of the remedies which we as a ministry will undertake is to address is the identification of talent at a tender age, especially in remote and rural areas through NESA. “We must now and onward gear ourselves toward preparation for the 2020 Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games,” Uutoni said. The minister also expressed satisfaction with the success achieved by marathoner Helalia Johannes and boxer Jonas Junias at the Games. Both athletes won gold medals. “It was not an easy task. These competitions demand stamina, fitness and skills from athletes. That is why preparation is of utmost importance. On the other hand, competing in athletics provides the opportunity to learn life lessons, sportsmanship, team-building, goal setting, time management and leadership development,” he added. Uutoni further said that he was advocating for the establishment of a long-awaited sports fund that would help balance the funding models of sport codes on an equal basis. Abner Xoagub, president of the Namibia National Olympic Committee, said the time was running out for athletes to qualify for the Tokyo Olympics, and that only two athletes had done so in the past two years.He urged the ministry to look at releasing funds early in order for preparations to start early enough.“We need to prepare intensively. Look at Roger Haitengi, for instance. We have a quality triple jumper but in order for him to explode we have to help him early by changing his mindset, his environment, diet and we can only achieve this if we put together resources,” he said. Haitengi took ninth spot in the triple jump final in Australia. Xoagub further stressed that the qualifying criteria were high, which resulted in a lot of complaints, but that was done in order to send quality athletes to the Games. Thirty-seven-year-old Johannes, who beat the best in the world to secure a top podium finish, said people ridiculed her before the Games but she emerged with gold. “They said old athletes were travelling to compete, but I showed them my capabilities. I thank God and everyone who trains and supports me,” she said. A visibly emotional Junias said he was robbed in Glasgow four years ago and had been preparing since then for his gold medal. “Every time I think back to that I get emotional but God gave me strength. Namibia, we are on the move and rising,” the youthful boxer said. LIMBA MUPETAMI

Sports ministry gears for Tokyo

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Namibian Sun 2025-09-18

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Sports ministry gears for Tokyo

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Namibian Sun 2025-09-18

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