BY MAGRETH RUZVIDZO
Triathlon Zimbabwe national team will approach this weekend’s African Triathlon Championships with optimism and confidence following good preparations.
Coach Pamela Fulton sais they were ready for the championships in Egypt.
The championships will be held at the resort town of Sharm El Sheikh and the team landed in Egypt on Wednesday in the company of tour manager Tracey Jacobs.
Fulton said the team members were taking part in a number of activities as a way of familiarising with the conditions.
“They have been on a bike ride and they have also swum on the sea. All preparations are in place, we are just making sure all the bikes are functioning properly. The athletes are very excited to be part of the competition,” she said.
Triathlon Zimbabwe president David Ellis added that the familiarisation exercise was important as some athletes were not used to the sea.
“The team members are acclimatising to the conditions on the ground, testing their bikes on the technical bike course and training in the sea which is unfamiliar territory for some of the athletes,” he said.
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“Technical issues with the bikes need to be attended to before the races over the weekend. This is a crucial element of the preparation as the bikes have had to be assembled after the long plane journey.”
The championships will see most African countries taking part, including South Africa, Cameroon, Egypt, Morocco, Gambia, Iraq and Mauritius, to mention a few.
The races will start tomorrow with individual races followed by team relay on Sunday.
“Everyone will be racing individually on Saturday and then team relay on Sunday which will be based on results of the individual races on Saturday,” Fulton said.
Mikayla Colgrave, who won a bronze medal last week at the same venue, is part of the team, as are Matt Denslow and Andie Kuipers, who is on a Triathlon scholarship in the United States.
Zimbabwe Team
U23 Elite Male — Matthew Denslow
U19 Junior Females — Mikayla Colegrave (captain), Andie Kuipers, Makanaka Mawere
Youth U17 Male — Austin Gill
Youth U15 Males — Joshua Jacobs, Matipa Mawere, Duwan Botha
Youth U15 Females — Emma Lidsba, Anje Van As
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