BY FORTUNE MBELE
THE Basketball Union of Zimbabwe (BUZ) is keeping fingers crossed that government will clear them to send teams to two tournaments in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Mali despite the suspension of sporting activities.
BUZ is preparing to send four teams for the two tournaments, two each in the boys and girls categories.
The Federation of International Basketball (Fiba) Under-18 Africa Cup will be staged in the DRC, while Mali will host the Under-16 African Championship next month.
BUZ president Joe Mujuru yesterday said they were working on meeting the Sports and Recreation Commission (SRC) requirements.
“The biggest challenge we are having now is that we have not received clearance for the competitions. What is more worrisome is that for the Under-18s, if we don’t get the clearances by Tuesday, then I am afraid it would be too late for us to secure the tickets for the flights,” he said.
“We are keeping our fingers crossed that we will get the communication maybe by Monday or early Tuesday morning so that we are able to secure the flights and confirm as well on a number of levels as well as the COVID-19 tests and everything being done on time.”
Mujuru said they would continue with preparations in the meantime.
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“We continue to plan and prepare for the competitions that are coming up. Unfortunately, we find ourselves in a situation where we are unable to continue our training because of the suspension of sport,” he said.
“However, we have not stopped planning. We have completed the exercise of registration for both competitions. We have almost completed all processes of passport for the athletes. We had a lot of support from the Registrar-General’s Office.”
BUZ was also finalising its budget for the tournament and that they had sponsors who had come on board, he said.
Zimbabwe is among favourites to make it to the Under-18s 3X3 World Cup, with the DRC tourney being a qualifier for the World Cup competition.
The Fiba Under-16 African Championship is a youth development tournament whose original edition took place in Mozambique in 2009.
The 12-team championship runs biennially.
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