Frank’s invitational boosted in tenth year

THE tenth Frank Fredericks Invitational athletics meet will be held at the Independence Stadium in Windhoek on April 7.

The event was sponsored to a record N$150 000 by Namibia Beverages through its Coca Cola brand this week. The event will start at 17h00.At the launch on Tuesday, Fredericks said the idea of the meet, which started ten years ago, was to pit the best juniors in the country against one another so that they could gain competitive experience.He said the other major aim of the meet was to give an opportunity to talented but under-privileged athletes to display their talents.He said he was encouraged to start the event because he saw many athletes who came to competitions but who had no decent places to sleep, while at the same time he decided to offer scholarships to athletes who performed exceptionally well.The Frank Fredericks Invitational is one of only five annual athletics events in Namibia.Event organiser Quinton-Steele Botes said because of the limited opportunities for local junior athletes to participate in top-level athletics events, the Frank Fredericks Invitational was a golden opportunity for them.”International junior athletes are also invited to participate in this elite athletics meeting to give more competition to Namibians,” he said.This year, three athletes who competed at the German and European championships will be in action, while out of the top 32 schools from South Africa, the top 10 boys and girls from the super 16 will compete against the Namibians.Namibia Beverages managing director Frik Oosthuizen said the size of the sponsorship made it the biggest event in the history of Namibian athletics.”On Friday, we will witness the best of the best in Namibian athletics,” he said.The sponsorship includes medals for the winners, transport for athletes from the various regions to Windhoek as well as accommodation, food and scholarships.The event selects eight top juniors under 19 years of age in each category of track and field.The categories will include 100 metres, 200 m, 400 m, 800 m, 1 500 m, 3 000 m, 100 m hurdles, 110 m hurdles, 400 m hurdles, long jump, high jump, triple jump, shot put, discus and javelin.The event will start at 17h00.At the launch on Tuesday, Fredericks said the idea of the meet, which started ten years ago, was to pit the best juniors in the country against one another so that they could gain competitive experience.He said the other major aim of the meet was to give an opportunity to talented but under-privileged athletes to display their talents.He said he was encouraged to start the event because he saw many athletes who came to competitions but who had no decent places to sleep, while at the same time he decided to offer scholarships to athletes who performed exceptionally well.The Frank Fredericks Invitational is one of only five annual athletics events in Namibia.Event organiser Quinton-Steele Botes said because of the limited opportunities for local junior athletes to participate in top-level athletics events, the Frank Fredericks Invitational was a golden opportunity for them.”International junior athletes are also invited to participate in this elite athletics meeting to give more competition to Namibians,” he said.This year, three athletes who competed at the German and European championships will be in action, while out of the top 32 schools from South Africa, the top 10 boys and girls from the super 16 will compete against the Namibians.Namibia Beverages managing director Frik Oosthuizen said the size of the sponsorship made it the biggest event in the history of Namibian athletics.”On Friday, we will witness the best of the best in Namibian athletics,” he said.The sponsorship includes medals for the winners, transport for athletes from the various regions to Windhoek as well as accommodation, food and scholarships.The event selects eight top juniors under 19 years of age in each category of track and field.The categories will include 100 metres, 200 m, 400 m, 800 m, 1 500 m, 3 000 m, 100 m hurdles, 110 m hurdles, 400 m hurdles, long jump, high jump, triple jump, shot put, discus and javelin.