17 Jun 2018

Sport contributes to self-development, perseverance and good health as well as teaching individuals to handle winning and losing, says Assistant Minister of Youth Empowerment, Sport and Culture Development, Dikgang Makgalemele.

 Speaking at Team Botswana send off ceremony on June 16, Makgalemele said apart from the fact that sport was recreational, enjoyable, inspiring and thrilling, it also brought athletes together and led to friendships.

 The Confederation of University and Colleges Sports Associations (CUCSA) games start today and will be officially opened by President Mokgweetsi Masisi.

“Sport reinforces the community spirit and there is no doubt that it is packed with benefits for the whole university community,” he said.

Furthermore, Makgalemele said he was cognizant of the fact that there were times that those competing in various games needed a little inspiration to get into the extra gear and lift their game to a new level.

“That is why I have decided to take my time off my busy schedule to come and do just that. As you go out there and compete, know that you are competing for yourselves but every Motswana will be right behind you, cheering you up as you lift our flag high,” he said.

The assistant minister noted that the Botswana Tertiary Students Sports Association (BOTESSA) had been taking part in the CUCSA games for a long time, but had only managed to compete and finish in a respectable position in the last two games.

He said BOTESSA finished on position two in 2014 in Zambia and scooped position three in Zimbabwe in 2016.

Makgalemele said he was hopeful that this year Botswana would be crowned champions on home soil.

He urged Team Botswana to give their best in order to win their individual and team events during the competition.

Receiving the flag from Makgalemele, Team Botswana chef de mission, Mmpoloki Keakile promised to return the flag clean and intact.

He said they would make the country proud during the games, adding that they had prepared well and that expectations were that they would be crowned the 2018 champions.

Botswana, Angola, Lesotho, Malawi, Namibia, South Africa, eSwati Zambia and Zimbabwe will compete in 10 different sporting codes amongst them athletics, basketball, chess, darts, football, netball, table tennis, tennis, rugby and volleyball and over 2 500 athletes are expected to take part. BOPA