BY MAGRETH RUZVIDZO
Zimbabwe triathlon team coach Pamela Fulton is expecting tough competition ahead of the South Africa Junior Championships and Africa Triathlon Junior Cup which kicks off tomorrow at Port Elizabeth, South Africa.
The team left the country on Thursday and arrived in Port Elizabeth yesterday to finalise preparations ahead of the big day.
In an interview with NewsDay Sport, Fulton said there were some areas which were still new to the team which need some finishing touch.
“Upon arrival, I have scheduled a sea swim practice with an experienced sea swim coach to give our athletes the best opportunity in the sea. The swim will be in the sea, which will be a first experience for most of our athletes,” Fulton said.
“Saturday morning (today) we will attend the scheduled course familiarisation which gives our athletes the opportunity to train in all three disciplines- swim, bike and run over the racecourse in preparation for Sunday’s event.”
Fulton also highlighted that the strong competition which the athletes will face tomorrow will be a learning platform to up their skills.
“There is a really strong contingent of Under-19 South Africa athletes competing on Sunday which will give our athletes a great experience to learn from and take forward in future years,” she said.
- Chamisa under fire over US$120K donation
- Mavhunga puts DeMbare into Chibuku quarterfinals
- Pension funds bet on Cabora Bassa oilfields
- Councils defy govt fire tender directive
Keep Reading
“Our juniors who qualified will be racing Under-19 in the Cup event. Most of our athletes are under-17, with Makanaka being our only Under-19 athlete.”
The event will be a selection platform and requires the athletes to execute a great performance to sail through.
“This event doubles up as a selection event for our athletes to qualify for Africa championships. In order to qualify to travel to compete in the Junior U-19 category, our athletes are required to finish within 10% of the event winner on Sunday. Makanaka Mawere qualified to travel last year, so we have high hopes she will qualify once again.
“Anyone who does not qualify this Sunday has a second opportunity to qualify at our flagship event in Troutbeck on April 2.”
- Follow Magreth on Twitter @MagrethRuzvidzo
