23 Mar 2022

Financial constraints hamper Special Olympics Botswana to fully train and equip athletes for major competitions.

In an interview, the organisation’s national director, Ross Tebele, said a government grant received through Botswana National Sport Commission (BNSC) was not enough given that they had to repetitively train their athletes for them to fully grasp what was expected from them.

He said their athletes needed special attention to be ready for both local and international competitions.

Tebele said they had an initiative called young athlete where they taught them basic things such as throwing the ball to each other.

He said Special Olympics Botswana was still having a challenge with some parents who were still reluctant to support their children, while others did not want their children to mingle with members of the public.

The national director said Special Olympics trained children with intellectual disabilities in different sporting codes.

He said their sporting codes included football, volleyball, swimming and athletics.

Tebele said every four years some athletes competed at international level, adding that next year Botswana would send a team to the Special Olympics World Games that would take place in Germany from June 17-25.

He said more than 200 countries would be competing, adding that their competition was different given that they did not consider the fastest time in athletics, nor the top goal scorer in football. rather, Tebele said, they used a raffle to pick athletes that would make up the team, a method that was used around the world. ENDS