THE crème de la crème of Namibia’s athletes, living at home and abroad, have geared up to compete in what promises to mark fierce National Championships competition this weekend.
The premier event on the Athletics Namibia calendar will be held at Windhoek’s Independence Stadium tomorrow and Sunday. Some notable names in the men’s sprint events include Namibian number-one-ranked Jesse Urikhob, 2011 National Champion Phillipus Paulus, Hitjivirue Kaanjuka and Basilius Karupu. United States-based Frank Puriza and Mauritius-based Dantago Gurirab will also make their presence known in the sprint events. Olympic hopeful Merlyn Diamond will be making her comeback at the Nationals when she challenges current number-one-ranked 200m sprinter Globine Mayova, 2011 National Champion Cornel Britz and 200m and 400m sensation Tjipekapora Herunga.In total, 256 athletes from 11 regions have qualified to compete in this year’s Bank Windhoek Senior National Athletics Championships. ‘The Bank Windhoek Senior National Athletics Championships is top priority for Athletics Namibia as our athletes will have an opportunity to qualify not only for the Senior African Championships to be held in Benin in June, but as well as the London 2012 Olympic Games,’ said Athletics Namibia President Frank Fredericks. The 2012 National Championships winners will be rewarded with N$24 000 for their efforts. In addition, AN will also announce its male and female athletes of the year for the 2011 season. The two-day event will take place from 10h00 to 17h00 tomorrow, and from 10h00 to 13h00 on Sunday. Entrance to the event is free.
