26 Jun 2014

After making the nation proud by winning six medals and finishing on third position at the recent African Youth Games, the national youth karate team will once again be searching for more continental glory at the Zone VI karate championships.

The tournament is scheduled for Zambia from June 26 to  29. The team, which comprises of 18 boys and 11 girls, left on June 25 on a mission across Southern Africa.

The karatekas will compete in both individual and team categories and once again, they will be under the tutelage of award winning Sensei George Tshikare who led them to glory at the recent Africa Youth Games.

Speaking during a press conference to mark the team’s send off, Tshikare said the team was well prepared and has been training well ahead of the tournament.

 He also revealed that one of the country’s top karatekas, Khaya Groth, will not be part of the team as he got injured during training. “We will continue where we left of during the Africa Youth Games,” he said.

When giving the athletes a word of encouragement, Major Montwedi Simon from Botswana Defence Force (BDF) said he is confident that they will bring even more medals from the Zone 6 tournament.

“You must represent the country well and behave in a manner that will portray Botswana in good light. Be good ambassadors because we are known for our good behaviour. Go out there and raised our flag high,” he said.

Also speaking during the send-off, Sensei Tshepo Bathai, President of Botswana Karate Association (BOKA), promised that the team will bring good results from the tournament.

However, the senior karate national team will not participate in this year’s Zone 6 championships as they will be preparing for the Africa senior karate championships to be held in Dakar, Senegal from August 10 to 16. ENDS