15 Jul 2021

The increasing number of COVID-19 cases has forced Botswana Athletics Association (BAA) to cancel inter-zonal track and field event, which was scheduled for Francistown tomorrow.

BAA vice president, Oabona Theetso, said in an interview that it was prudent to cancel the event because COVID-19 cases were high both in Greater Gaborone and Greater Francistown.

BAA, he said, was dedicated to combating the spread of corona virus, adding that safety of the athletes and the community was a priority.

The event, he said, was postponed until further notice, adding that they were also consulting on when the meet would be hosted.

He said as much as they had wanted to prepare their athletes for other competitions such as the World Junior Championships, they had to look at a bigger picture, adding that the health facilities were now overstretched by high rising numbers of COVID-19 patients.

“If we had continued with the meet and something happened to our athletes, it was going to back-fire on us as BAA, and whatever happens it will haunt us, maybe for the rest of our lives,” he said.

He, however, said the cancellation had affected their plan, given that they wanted to give their athletes an opportunity to qualify for World Athletics Championships Oregon 22 and the Commonwealth Games.

Theetso said the world was in the middle of the pandemic, adding that they were cognisant of the fact that their preparations for major championship were still going to be affected by other countries’ travel restrictions or lockdowns.

In Botswana, he said their intension was to demarcate the country into two, North and South; to restrict athletes from going to other zones for competitions.

“If athletes are within the zones, it is better, because we have realised that travelling from one zone to another can be a serious danger,” he said. Ends