26 Apr 2018

Commonwealth Games 400 metres gold medalist, Isaac Makwala has urged sponsors to invest more on  grassroots and  upcoming athletes.

Speaking during  the Confederation of University and Colleges Sports Associations (CUCSA) stakeholder engagement on Wednesday, Makwala said there was a need for motivation at the grassroots level.

He said it was paramount for sponsors to start channeling resources at the grassroots level such as the CUCSA level.

Furthermore, he said for any athlete to qualify for the Olympics, there should be a solid foundation in place and something to motivate athletes to go the extra mile.

“Sports nowadays is a full time job hence it should be treated as such. As athletes we have our own offices at the stadium, we wake up everyday to go to our office,” he said.

The associations local organising committee chairperson, Fish Pabalinga thanked Makwala for supporting and endorsing the CUCSA Games.

He said preparations for hosting the games were ongoing, adding that they would be held from June.

He said they were expecting at least 2 500 athletes from 10 participating countries, adding that the number of sport volunteers to be engaged would range from 150 to 200.

“So I want to talk to potential sponsors that your brand will be seen in all 10 SADC countries because we are in discussions with some of broadcasters, like SuperSport, who have shown interest in partnering with us,” he said.

Botswana, Angola, Lesotho, Malawi, Namibia, South Africa, Swaziland, Zambia, Zimbabwe and Mozambique   will compete in different sporting codes amongst them basketball, chess, darts, football, karate, netball, table tennis and swimming. Ends