24 Aug 2014

Botswana Darts Association (BODA) president, Basil January says the darts team they are sending to Harare for the Zone Six federation championships will make an impact in the competition.

Speaking at the teams send off ceremony on Friday, August 22, January said the team was going to compete, and if they get beaten along the way, they would have done their best.

He said the team promised to wear and respect the national colours at all times as they will be Botswana’s ambassadors.

The darts association has send a team compromising four under 25, four veterans, six senior women players and eight senior men.

Botswana National Sport Council chairperson, Solly Reikeletseng said in the last three years BODA had shown significant growth.

Reikeletseng said the last time he attended the BODA annual general assembly he encouraged them to redefine their sport as there was a misconception that darts was only a sport for beer halls.

He said the code has since proved people wrong and, in addition, he said they had formulated a comprehensive strategic plan whose focus was to grow the game.

He urged them to utilise their allocated funds: “Use your money to grow the game because at the end of the year if you have failed to use it we will assume that you do not need the funds allocated to your code,” he advised.

He noted that in their last competition they managed to bring a bronze medal, adding that they should work extra hard to bring something better that bronze this time around.

Reikeletseng further told the players to take pride in representing their country given that there were more professional darts players who have not donned the national colours.

“Mind you, the BNSC has set a target of five medals in the 2028 Olympic Games, so some of you have ample time to ensure that we achieve our set target,” he plead.

In other issues, Reikeletseng told the players that they had taken a deliberate move to send them to Zimbabwe because there was no Ebola case reported in that country.

He said if there was a reported case they would not be sending a team to that country because it was imperative to preserve lives. ENDS