Paralympic Games medallist and T13 sprinter Johannes Nambala says he is happy to see the Namibia Paralympic Committee (NPC) recruiting young athletes for the national team.
Nambala, who won silver medals in 200 and 400 metres (m) sprints at the 2016 Rio Paralympic Games, recently told Nampa some of the new recruits represented Namibia very well at the 2022 Marrakech Grand Prix in Morocco.
“It’s good motivation for young athletes to compete in events like these as most elite athletes in their categories compete at these events. They should use it motivation to do well for themselves,” said Nambala.
The sprinter, who is still the reigning 400m International Paralympic Committee World Para-Athletics champion and who won a bronze medal in the 400m race at the 2020 Tokyo Paralympic Games, added that the current crop of elite para-athletes in Namibia is getting old and the NPC introducing young athletes at this type of platform is good for grooming upcoming athletes.
“If you train hard and do well at these events it’s good motivation for you as an athlete. These young athletes competing in a Grand Prix should view this as a good stepping stone because going forward they will understand what they are capable of as this is where most international experience is gained,” Nambala said.
NPC secretary general Michael Hamukwaya also told this agency that their trip to Morocco was a success and one of their biggest achievements was having 11 new athletes classified.
“Our pathway for the 2024 Paris Paralympic Games has started well as we got athletes classified. We are now looking forward to competing in more international competitions,” he said.
Hamukwaya added that competitions are taking place in close succession, but their goal is to get more slots for the 2024 Paris Paralympic Games.
“The biggest issue is that the NPC is not financially stable. We get funding from NamPower but it is not enough to take us to all the competitions we would like to compete in,” Hamukwaya said.
He said more funding is needed from the government and from any companies that want to change the lives of the athletes and see them bring more silverware home.