06 May 2021

Two tennis players; Thato Holmes and Tshepo Mosarwa, were part of a team that recently won the USA South Men’s Tennis Conference Championships.

The two, who are on athletic scholarships at North Carolina Wesleyan College, assisted their team to win 12th consecutive championships.

They were aided by American organisation, Play College Tennis, to secure scholarships.

In an interview on Tuesday, Botswana Tennis Association (BTA) president, Oaitse Thipe. indicated that the scholarships were not 100 per cent and BTA assisted them to acquire elite scholarships under Botswana National Sports Commission (BNSC) to augment the sponsorship.

Thipe explained that both players were expected to be part of a provisional squad that would be going to play in Congo in June, though the final decision would be taken by the team coach.

He said Holmes was part of the national team that represented the country at the All Africa Games in Morocco and Davies Cup in Congo Brazzaville in 2019.

The BTA head highlighted that Play Tennis also helped Bonolo Molefhe, a student at Lewis Clark University and Thandi Makolo who was a student at Shaw University in Lowa to acquire scholarships.

The president highlighted that college tennis was a pathway to professional tennis, adding that the level was high, therefore it was BTA’s aim to send more players.

He cited that a Motswana coach  was in charge of Wagner University, which he believed would also work for Botswana in the long run.

Regarding white level recognition, he indicated that BTA Coach Education system met all the criteria established by the International Tennis Federation (ITF) Coaches Commission for the recognition.

 “This means ITF recognizes our processes of coaches’ education,” he added.

The recognition, he said was for a period of four years, ending in December 2025, noting that Botswana was the fourth country in Africa to be recognized for its coaches education.

Thipe said there were six local tutors who could conduct Play tennis courses in Botswana without having to import any.

He said the recognition would benefit local coaches since there would be more jobs for them, adding that it also showed growth in the coaches education department. ENDS