4 May 2011
Sports Minister Kenneth Chipungu has said there is need to invest heavily in youth programmes through the Talent Identification Programme (TIP) if Zambia is to start recording positive results at national level.
Chipungu said this yesterday in Lusaka when he hosted a luncheon for the Zambia Secondary Schools Sports Association’s (ZSSSA) victorious team that minted 20 medals during the Confederations of Schools Sports Association of Southern Africa (COSSASA) games held in Namibia.
The minister said there was need to replace tired legs in most associations if Zambia was to start winning medals and gave an example of the 2010 Delhi Commonwealth squad that performed badly.
Chipungu also said athletes needed to be appreciated and not just ending on giving them luncheons but a token of appreciation should be shown to enable them compete even better, while not forgetting the efforts teachers and coaches put to ensure their athletes excel.
He urged teachers to ensure sport was taken up as a profession which not just any person should participate in, saying time was running out as Zambia needed to get focused and put in measures to win medals.
The Zambian team won 11 gold, four silver and five bronze medals during the two-day event held in Windhoek, Namibia.
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Let’s Invest in Youth Talent Promo, Says Minister