Athletes that competed at the 2022 edition of the Athletics Namibia (AN) Senior National Championships say the competition has grown and the event organiser went all out to make it a success.
The 2022 Senior National Athletics Championships saw over 230 athletes from 10 regions competing for top honours from Friday to Saturday at the Independence Stadium in the capital.
In an interview with Nampa on Saturday, 400 metres (m) national champion Ivan Danny Geldenhuys who is based in Pretoria, South Africa said the national championships were great as it was one of the toughest he has competed in since 2018.
“I came, I worked hard and the hard work paid off. To come and perform in front of your people at home is a great feeling as this was the toughest and hardest 400m I have competed in a long while,” said Geldenhuys who stated that this year’s championships saw four athletes push each other to the line.
Geldenhuys who also won a silver medal in the 200m sprint ran a personal best of 46.27 seconds in the 400m, added that if he keeps injury free he can improve his times and probably get a wild card for the 2022 World Athletics Championships.
“The times I’ve clocked, moved me into the top 40 in the world and with hard work, I can get a wild card to represent Namibia at the World Champs in Oregon, United States of America,” he said.
Meanwhile, 2022 national bronze medallist in the 400m sprint, Mahmad Bock also told this agency that the senior national championships were a very good competition that was well organised.
“I have to give credit to AN because this looks like we can organise major events in this country,” he said.
He added that athletics is growing and therefore more sponsors, as well as youth involvement, are needed in the game.
“It’s not only the two girls (Christine Mboma and Beatrice Masilingi) that are shining but the men are very competitive with each other. What is needed is more sponsors and more youth involvement. We can compete with world-class athletes if we get exposure,” Bock said.
He stated that Namibia currently has a very strong 4x400m men’s relay team and with support, they can qualify for major championships.
Source: The Namibian Press Agency
