20 May 2014

Botswana karate youth games team is optimistic of a great spectacle against Africa’s tried and tested karatekas at the African Youth Games slated for Gaborone this week.

Speaking from their base in Tlokweng, team coach, Sensei George Tshikare was hopeful that despite an early set back they encountered by the loss of their star performer Khaya Groth owing to an injury, they still assembled a strong team.

Groth, who had already reached top results at international levels suffered a dislocation to his left shoulder and was ruled out of the ring for the next three months.

In his place the technical team has called upon Tlotlang Ponatshego who had been seen as a perfect replacement in the Under 76kg individual kata. Tshikare was however adamant that they were looking forward to stiffer competition from north African opponents like Egypt, Algeria, Tunisia and Morocco.

All these teams have been impressive in World Youth championships like the recent Karate Cadet and Junior World cup in Spain. The Botswana team has been in impressive preparations ever since they went into camp.

They took part in the Durban Open championships where the stocky karateka Thabang Setshego emerged tops in individual kumite. The youngster remains one of the gold medal prospects in camp for the Under 55kg individual kumite spot.

The 17-years-old Bonnington Junior Secondary School student is the reigning champion of last year’s Zone VI championships and also a silver medalist for the Kofukan World Cup.

He has been thrown into the deeper end together with Matlaaone Thebeng and Katlego Tsenene for individual kumite. Tsenene is a Maoka Junior school student and also a Zone VI champion in the Under61kg and the Kofukan World champs.

Tsenene has been with the junior team since 2012 and was part of the team that took part in the Tunisia Africa Cup. He was beaten by an Algerian opponent in the first round.

Another strong contender for the first spot is the Hayashi-Ha youngster Phillipe Revaka. Revaka has been crowned the Gaborone Open kata champion and last year he won a double gold at the Cape Town Open.

Revaka is expected to form a deadly combination with Leonard Modise and Tshepo Baumake. The trio was crowned silver medalists at the SA open.

The girl’s team kata would be represented by Gomolemo Mabolokanye, Senty Kgosikoma and Wame Senaise. The rest of the ladies’ team is made up of Wathuto Make, Panaki Tlhoolebe and Rejoice Mothibi. Ends