29 Jan 2013

Young athletes have been urged to change their lifestyle and take collective responsibility to use the chance to access the best education in order to have a successful life journey.

The chairperson of African Sports Star Centre, Kitso Dlamini urged athletes at a soccer tournament organised by the centre in partnership with Phoenix Bakery.

The tournament dubbed ‘Phoenix Youth Football Festival’ attracted eight teams: six teams for boys aged under 12 and 14 as well as two teams for girls aged under 14.

Since the centre grooms young athletes aged between 7 and 17 years, Dlamini noted that it was their wish to pave a successful life journey for the young athletes by inculcating moral teach of Botho at childhood and also to sensitize them about the importance of education. He said it was the responsibility of the centre to build and nurture the good characters of children from childhood.

“It is our commitment to impart knowledge to students with an aim to fully develop and make them better people in the society”, he added.

Dlamini explained that they organized the tournament because they wanted to expose children to competition. He said players would understand the importance of competition and get motivated.

The tournament was also a marketing strategy that could assist the centre to attract more sponsors.

Dlamini said one of their goals was to see sports developing in the town, adding that in future the town might be a sport hub. He said they wanted to see youth in Botswana growing up as responsible citizens who were able to contribute positively to the country’s sporting fraternity.

He said their aim was to compete locally and internationally, adding that they would take on board different sports coaches and club managers as they wanted youngsters to be given a platform to nurture their talents as they graduate from the centre.

One of the local coaches, Tefo Mooki advised athletes to refrain from activities that would ruin their life, adding that they should be ambitious so that they could be successful in life. He said they should dream big so that they could be successful in life.

Mooki emphasized discipline and cleanliness among sportsman and women. He said discipline is a key to become responsible national. He said athletes should take seriously advices, knowledge, skills, values they get from the centre as they would assist them to become leaders of tomorrow and become effective agents of the desired change. He also stressed the importance of exercising on daily basis. ENDS