Olympians receive heroes welcome
The Ministry of Sport, Youth and National Service welcomed back athletes, Christine Mboma, Beatrice Masilingi and other athletes and support staff who participated at the recently concluded 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games.
Agnes Tjongarero, Minister of Sport, Youth and National Services said they as a government have been there for the junior athletes contrary to widespread criticism that government did nothing for the girls.
“I want you to know that the Government walked every step of the way, with these two junior athletes and every young aspiring athlete that participate in school sport, does this under the watchful eye of the Namibia School Sport Union (NSSU),” she added. She explained that NSSU is a government fully funded sport development programme aimed at discovering sport gems at schools such as Mboma and Masilingi.
She congratulated all the athletes saying qualifying for the Olympics was already a big deal in sport and the nation is proud of them all for holding the Namibian flag high despite the challenges.
Information and Communication Technology Minister, Peya Mushelenga said sport has a unifying power engraved in the spirits of solidarity, endurance and determination to conquer, which are in line with the tenets of Namibia.
He said the whole nation was proud of team Namibia’s participation at the 2020 Olympic Games and the Information Ministry as a custodian of the Nationhood and National Pride programme was excited to share in this national pride.
“The performance of the Namibian Olympians came at a time when the nation was battling a devastating third wave of the COVID-19 pandemic and in the midst of it all, the athletes brought about a new dawn of hope the country, from all its corners, smiled again, this time in unison,” he concluded.
