Swimming championship offers glimpse of TZ’s international readiness

TANZANIA: TANZANIA National Open Championship has provided a valuable glimpse into the country’s swimming standards and readiness ahead of upcoming international competitions.

Tanzania Swimming Association (TSA) Chairman, David Mwasyoge, said the championship that ended yesterday, enabled the association to assess the progress made by swimmers since the previous competition held in April, while also identifying areas that require further improvement.

“The Championship has given us a clear picture of how prepared we are to represent the country internationally. We have also been able to assess how much the swimmers have improved since our previous competition in April,” Mwasyoge said.

He added that the assessment was particularly important as Tanzania prepares to participate in the East and Central Africa swimming championships in Kampala, Uganda, where the country is expected to field a 30-member national team.

TSA Competitions Secretary, Frank Lusawa, said the strong competition witnessed during the championship, including the breaking of several records, demonstrated the progress being made by swimmers, coaches and parents.

He said the association was also encouraging young swimmers to combine sport with education so they could benefit from opportunities such as scholarships.

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“Many young people have benefited from sport, including securing scholarships. We encourage them to study while pursuing their sporting careers because sport alone is not enough. Education and sport must go hand in hand,” Lusawa said.

Meanwhile, Monti International School Director, Fatma Fernandes, said the private sector had a responsibility to work with the Government and TSA in creating an environment that enables young sporting talent to develop and compete at higher levels.

Fernandes said Monti had invested in a 25-metre semiOlympic swimming pool and had also been bringing in coaches from different countries to work with Tanzanian coaches and strengthen coaching expertise locally.

“As stakeholders in swimming, we felt it was important to contribute to the Government’s efforts to bring change to the sport. We have built a swimming pool, but we have also brought different coaches to work with our Tanzanian coaches so that we can strengthen coaching expertise,” she said.