NOC-K bails out broke netball team for South Africa trip
The national women’s netball team, Divas, will depart
on Friday night for the Africa Cup 2022 after the National Olympic Committee of
Kenya (NOC-K) lent the squad a hand for their South Africa’s trip following
weeks of uncertainty.
The squad of 12 athletes and five officials were
scheduled to leave for Pretoria on Thursday but according a source who asked
not to be named for fear of reprisal, the government remained non-committal on
facilitating the team for the championship which starts on August 21.
The Africa Cup doubles up as second of the five
qualifiers, for the Netball World Cup 2023 (NWC2023), in Cape Town South
Africa.
NOC-K undertook to cater for air tickets,
tracksuits and kits, financial support, accommodation and Covid-19 tests.
The two top finishing teams from the event will
then be invited by World Netball to compete at the NWC2023, this does not
include South Africa who have already pre-qualified for the NWC2023 as hosts.
Head coach Joseph Makau has exuded confidence they
will clinch one of the two tickets reserved for Africa.
“We have never trained as long and hard as we have
now, the excitement in the team is inspiring and moving. We have two goals
going into the games. To qualify for the 2023 Cape town World Cup and improve
our ranking. Kenya dominates in sports and we need to fly our flag high as
netball.”
Kenya is in Pool B against Zambia, Malawi and
Eswatini.
Divas are currently ranked 40th in the world,
Uganda sixth, Malawi seventh, Zimbabwe 13th, Zambia 17th, Namibia 23rd and
Botswana 28th
The competition will be played in a round-robin
format with the 9 teams split into two pools based on the most recent results
from the Africa Cup 2021 final placing.
Parin Simiyu, the captain of the team will lead
the Divas ahead of their first game on Sunday against Zambia.
The latest call up in the team, 20 years of age is
midfielder center, Vida Atieno.
Shooter Lydia Nyapere and midcourt Irene Anyango
who earned their first call ups to the national team at the 2019 Africa
Championship have also joined the team. Other notable inclusions are seasoned
shooter Bridgit Nanzala and ever-green defender Florence Ndombi.
Speaking during the handover of the cheque, NOC-K
Secretary General Francis Mutuku spoke on the excitement NOC-K has in
supporting the team as it departs.
“We’re delighted to support the National Netball
women’s team to represent the country at the Africa Cup, having come straight
from the Commonwealth Games, we’ve been challenged to see our fellow neighbors
perform well and improve our ranking.”
“We’ve come back with lessons learnt and we want
to develop our sports and begin the journey to Victoria 2026 Commonwealth
Games.”
The treasurer, Eliud Kariuki also encouraged the
team to give their best as they represent the country, acting as a unifying
factor as the tournament falls under certain political factors in the country.
Women Representative Paurvi Rawal and executive
member Paul Otula seconded Francis Mutuku and Eliud Kariuki citing the 2014
Youth Games bronze medal should motivate the girls towards yearning for a
position in the 2026 Victoria Games.
The executive members also shared important lessons, experiences and challenges from Birmingham Commonwealth Games and assured an open pathway for further communication.
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