ZAMBIAN SHE-SWIMMING OFFICIAL LEAVES FOR HUNGARY

                    THE STORY OF RENNIE - SWIMMMER

From the left is Dionne Rennie and on the right is Zambia Amature Swimming Union (ZASU) president Guy Phiri exhibiting their award - Picture courtesy of Sherry Chabala

ZAMBIA Amateur Swimming Union (ZASU) member coach Dionne Rennie has left for Hungary, Budapest to attend a three months training course in sports science organized by the Singapore National Olympics Council in collaboration with the International Olympics Committee (IOC) and the Republic Polytechnics.

Confirming the development in Lusaka yesterday, ZASU Vice president, Adewale Grillo expressed gratitude to the National Olympics Committee of Zambia (NOCZ) for selecting Rennie to be one of the trainers for the Budapest swimming team, representing the country.

"We wish Rennie all the best and look forward  to her to exploit all the skills and knowledge on the international front of the sport and come to share her experiences with Zambian swimmers on her return," he said.

The three months Hungary sponsorship trail in sports is expected to deliver knowledge and competencies to sports men and women drawn from different sports disciplines.

Mr Grillo said the course will also enhance the competencies of executives for the planning and delivery of various disciplines of sport programmes in schools, communities and commercial sporting undertakings.

Meanwhile, Rennie has thanked NOCZ for according her what she described as a 'one time life opportunity' and has since pledged to work hard for the nation.

"I am really grateful to the National Olympics Committee for according me this rare opportunity. I can say that it is now a dream come true and am really looking forward to learning something from the course and further network with other sports men and women," she said.

She urged young people to develop interest in sports as it is an essential aspect to stride for their wellbeing and enables many youths to avoid being engaged in illicit activities that would put themselves in conflict with the law.

"My encouragement to young people is that they should always pursue their dreams for future development that would enhance their well-being and develop interest in various sporting disciplines. This is a key to the wellbeing as human beings," she said.

Rennie further appealed to government to construct many sports infrastructure and other recreation facilities in the country to foster the development of sports in the country.

The trainer urged government to build more sports infrastructure in the country contending that the current infrastructure is inadequate for the many youth to participate in sporting activities, especially those in the rural peripheral.

From the left is Dionne Rennie and on the right is Zambia Amature Swimming Union (ZASU) president Guy Phiri exhibiting their award - Picture courtesy of Sherry Chabala

She called on tertiary institutions country-wide to embrace the introduction of  faculties that focuses on sporting training of both sexes in order to put the country on sporting circumferences on the world map and implored all the relevant authorities in charge of various sporting disciplines in Zambia to come up with deliberate policies that would encourage many youths to acquire different sporting talents.

She said the involvement of many youths in sporting activities such as swimming will enable the country to harness and receive more medals at international and local competitive levels.

“Time is now that interested sports men and women changed their focus on football as the only sporting event in the country. Swimming is also one of the interesting sport that is not yet known to many sportsmen in the country,” said Rennie.

The coach said swimming has been practiced in the country for a long time now and it became prominent after swimmer Theach Xoxo competed on the ninety days swimming pool at the Olympic Youth Development Centre in 2013.

Last year, the Zambian swimming team won the CANA Zone 1V swimming gala, beating South Africa, Malawi and Tanzania. Remmie, becomes the first Zambian swimmers trainer to be posted overseas for a job training career after being selected from the coach swimmers which was held in 2013 to get a local trainers to attend a three months training course in the same discipline, in Budapest, Hungary.

Barnabas Zulu  - Story writer

Darlingtone Kabambe  - Editor

Sherry Chabala and Ireen Watema - Pictures

Susan Ngoma, Valerie Banda and Esnart Chikobeli - Sources