12 Sep 2024

The three-day inaugural Letlhakeng District Sports Festival kicks off on Friday and ends on Sunday, courtesy of Ministry of Youth, Gender, Sports and Culture.

An official from the ministry’s office in Letlhakeng, Seshego Makgatle told BOPA in an interview that the festival was intended to promote physical health and wellness and foster a sense of sportsmanship in the community.

Makgatle was optimistic that the festival would ultimately help deal with non-communicable disease.

She said the festival would kick off with wellness day at the Rural Administration Centre parking lot. She appealed to members of the community to participate in large numbers.

Ms Makgatle said the day would be packed with physical activities like aerobics and capacity building exercises, which would be led by Botswana Defence Force instructors from Thebephatshwa air base and there would be health and wellness stalls led by Letlhakeng District Health Management Team.

She said the event would move to Ditshegwane on Saturday where there would be sports competitions.

“We chose Ditshegwane because of the convenient playing grounds and the fact that the youth of Ditshegwane are fond of sport,” she explained.

She said they found it befitting to involve under 17 teams from Letlhakeng and Ditshegwane, as curtain raisers to the Saturday sport competition in efforts to develop sportsmanship from the grass roots.

Makgatle said football, volleyball teams both males and females and netball teams that emerged champions from previous constituency tournaments would prove their mettle in this competition.

Later on the day, there would be traditional games such as the sack race and egg race amongst others.

Semifinal and final games would be played on Sunday and the price tag for champions is P4 000, first and second runners up will pocket P3 000 and  P2 000 respectively while the team occupying the fourth spot will go home with P 1 000.

Mokgatle said an official from the ministry of youth Mr Godfrey Bose was expected to give motivational words to young people.Funds permitting, she said the aim was to turn the festival into an annual event and appealed to government departments to alternate in organsing and hosting wellness events. Ends