inBUSINESS Issue 15

SPORTS
A Night Full of Cheers for Chess
After Minister Olopeng warned athletes against drugs, Karabo
Sibanda emerged the light of the night as Sportsperson of the
Year while Vincent Crossbie of Botswana Motorsport won the
BNSC chairman’s heart both for his gritty approach to grueling
terrain and exceptional fundraising zeal that saw him enter the
Dakar Rally against a stack of odds
minister said athletes who used drugs were
only bringing an end to their careers.
“Drug and substance abuse are enemies of
excellence in sports,” he said. “Please do not
be tempted. Use only your God-given ability
and work hard to achieve what nobody can
take away from you.”
Minister Olopeng added that the lives of
athletes should reflect the celebrities that they
had become because whatever they did would
be copied by young people.
The awards came at a time when Botswana
is preparing to take part in high stakes
competitions, among them the Region 5
Games of the 2018 African Union Sports
Council, the Commonwealth Games and the
Africa Youth Games for all of which winning
athletes should be motivated to qualify.
Sportsperson of the year, Karabo Sibanda and BAA coach, Mogomotsi Otsetswe
Words: Mosah Mokganedi
The private sector, especially laggard if it failed to appreciate this change
multinationals operating in and approached sports accordingly, he
Botswana, has been called warned. Olopeng said youth programmess
upon to promote sports and like Re ba Bona Ha, centres of sports
invest in athletes.
excellence and age-based national teams all
Speaking at this year’s BNSC Awards
on October 7, the Minister of Youth
required investment and proper structures.
But if athletes should continue to produce
Empowerment, Culture and Sports good results, sports leaders too must play their
Development, Thapelo Olopeng, said the
significant strides made by the country’s
athletes in the recent past were crying out for
such a change of mindset in the private sector
part in taking good care of their charges, said
the minister. The best medical attention and
excellent accommodation were two examples
of what athletes deserved in care, he added.
to permit investing in grassroots development Turning to the athletes themselves,
in sports.
The point was that sports had become
Olopeng once again warned them against use
of performance enhancing drugs. Speaking
a business and Botswana could become a strongly against substance abuse, the
“Our athletes have raised
Botswana’s flag high around
the world and we are very
grateful for their contribution
in branding Botswana as a
destination of choice,”
Olopeng paid a glowing tribute to President
Ian Khama for his demonstrable support for
sports since assuming office in 2008, saying
sports had consequently grown in leaps
and bounds. An example of this was how
Botswana became the first African country to
host the World Netball Youth Cup last winter.
The minister noted also that Botswana
had garnered a total of 97 medals across
different codes from regional, continental
and international meets since April this year
and that this impressive performance was
rewarded with allowances and incentives
amounting to P3.5 million.
The minister was upbeat even where there
was disappointment, saying while Botswana’s
national teams had not won any medals, their
performance had won admiration for the
country around the world.
Meanwhile, the Botswana Athletics
Continued On Page 49
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www.inbusiness.co.bw | Issue 15 | 2017