MASHONALAND East maintained their dominance in local athletics after winning their fourth straight national title at the National Association of Secondary Schools Heads (Nash) Inter-Provincial athletics championships held at Peterhouse in Marondera.
DANIEL NHAKANISO SPORTS REPORTER
The two-day meet which ended on Friday saw over 1 200 young competitors from all the 10 provinces aged 17 and under competing in track and field events as well as cross-country competitions.
In the end, Mashonaland East retained the title they won in Harare last year after amassing 30 gold, 17 sliver and 17 bronze medals to finish ahead of Manicaland province.
Manicaland came second after winning 16 gold medals, 14 silver and 15 bronze medals while Masvingo came third after claiming 13 gold medals, 11 silver and 17 bronze medals.
Mashonaland West came fourth ahead Bulawayo while Matabeleland South and Harare finished in sixth and seventh positions respectively.
The Midlands, Mashonaland Central and Matabeleland North completed the standings.
The Nash inter-provincial athletics championships culminated in the selection of a 43-member national squad for the regional Confederation of Schools Sport Association of Southern Africa (Cossasa) athletics competition set for April 24-27 in Gaborone, Botswana.
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Phillip Chikomwe, the Nash head official in charge of athletics, said he was impressed with the high level of competition displayed at the Nash inter-provincial championships.
“All the provinces were represented well during the Nash inter-provincials. We witnessed some very fast times and as I speak we are still comparing the times to find out if any records were broken, but there was definitely an improvement in the times,” he said.
Chikomwe said the national squad selected for the regional championships will be confirmed later this week before they converge for camp in Bulawayo on April 16.
“The 43-member team selected after the Nash inter-provincials will converge at Northlea High School in Bulawayo on April 16 for the final camp. We encourage the parents of the children selected to ensure that their children’s passports are ready on time to ensure we don’t have any last minute withdrawals,” he said.
Zimbabwe are the defending Cossasa champions after amassing a total of 61 medals, comprising 19 gold, 20 silver and 22 bronze, when they hosted the games last year.
