E136.7m Olympic medal financing needed

MBABANE – The Eswatini Olympic and Commonwealth Games Association (EOCGA) is projecting an investment of E136.7 million to secure an Olympic Games medal within the next 12 years.

This target is integral to the Eswatini High-Performance Sports Strategy (EHPSS), a blueprint unveiled by the Minister for Sports, Culture and Youth Affairs, Bongani Nzima, just two days ago.

This road map aims for the nation to consistently qualify for the Olympics and, ultimately, to break their duck and achieve their first-ever medal.

To date, Eswatini boasts a tally of four Commonwealth Games medals: a silver and three bronzes.

funding

The strategy is broken down into several key focus areas, each requiring significant funding, presenting a golden opportunity for various stakeholders to support the national effort and play their part.

One of these focus areas is talent identification, with an estimated E2.5 million needed to initiate this year.

Last year saw government contribute E2 million through the Tinkhundla Talent Search and Identification programme, covering the arts, culture, football and athletics. However, by 2036, Eswatini hopes to win an Olympic medal, with this particular area projected to require E38.5 million in funding.

Other key areas for investment include preparations for international competitions, providing athletes with cutting-edge sports science and technological support and ensuring strong governance and leadership within sporting bodies.
Each of these seven strategic areas comes with its own set of objectives and targets to be met year-on-year, building towards that 2036 medal bid.

This year’s targets include getting 200 athletes onto the Talent Identification (TID) programme, establishing a High-Performance Centre (HPC) either at the University of Eswatini (UNESWA) or the EOCGA Headquarters in Lobamba, and raising at least E10 million to fuel these activities.

optimistic

Speaking at the launch, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Maxwell Jele was optimistic about the prospects of developing Olympic medal contenders by 2036.

He pointed to the progress of top junior swimmer Luca Fraser, who is currently honing his skills at an HPC in Pretoria, South Africa.

The feedback, Jele noted, suggests Fraser is a world-class talent, who could even be in the medals within eight years.

It is worth noting that the young swimmer has reportedly shaved three seconds off one of his events since joining the performance centre.

Currently, Eswatini lacks its own HPC and has had to rely on neighbouring countries like South Africa to provide elite athletes with the necessary high-performance environment for international competition preparation.

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