Five Tanzanian swimmers sail through to J’burg final
Tanzanian swimmers take instructions from their trainer, Michael Livingstone, during a practice session at the Ellis Park in Johannesburg. PHOTO | MAJUTO OMARY
What you need to know:
- Mwaipasi is impressed with how the Tanzanian swimmers took on their hyped counterparts, exuding confidence that they will win medals
Johannesburg. Five Tanzanian swimmers put up sterling displays yesterday to romp into the final of different categories of the South Africa Level 2 Championship at the Ellis Park.
Celina Itatiro, one of the most promising Tanzanian swimmers, made it into the final of the 100-metre butterfly style in the Under-12 competition.
In the Under-11 backstroke event, Marin de Villard sailed through to the final while Isabella Kortland also qualified in the 50-metre race, which involved the swimmers under the age of 15.
The list also includes Jacqueline Kortland and Josephine Oosterhuis who made it in the 100-metre breaststroke event for the Under-15 competitors.
The finals were expected to take place late last evening.
It was a bad day for Adil Bharmal, Pieter de Raadt and Amani Doggart who failed to qualify despite displaying good skills.
Amani embarked on the competition brightly and managed to win the first heat, but in the end, she could not make it into the top 10.
“I was very disappointed after failing to qualify. I did well in the first heat, but luck was not on my side in subsequent heats,” said Amani.
Speaking after the event, team coaches Michael Livingstone and Alex Mwaipasi, lavished praise on their swimmers for being competitive. Livingstone said all swimmers did well, but disclosed that the teens were let down by the cold weather of Johannesburg, which stood at 15 Celsius degrees. “They all did well, but honestly speaking, they should have done much better had it not been for the Johannesburg weather. It is too cold for majority of our swimmers,” he said.
“Most of the youngsters here come from Dar es Salaam with just a few hailing from Arusha. Those from Arusha look comfortable here.”
For his part, Mwaipasi said he was impressed with how the swimmers took on their hyped counterparts, exuding confidence that they will win medals.
“They have generally performed very well and I have good feeling that some of them will win medals. I am impressed by the approach of those without international experience; they looked confident and very competitive,” he said.
