Paralympic movement faces internal storm

Axed Namibia National Paralympic Committee (NNPC) secretary general Michael Hamukwaya says an urgent meeting is needed by all concerned parties to address the issues affecting local Paralympic sport.

The NNPC interim committee, which fired Hamukwaya, was established by the Namibia Sports Commission this year to oversee the daily affairs of the NNPC.

However, the interim committee asked Hamukwaya to remain head coach of the para-athletes but not to intefere with the committee’s administrative affairs.

In an exclusive interview with Desert FM recently, he stated that the current situation is not ideal for the long-term well-being of the athletes.

He added that the Paralympic movement has done well over the years, bringing home medals from regional and international Paralympic competitions.

It has put the country’s name on the global stage, he said.

“With the ongoing situation, all of us are trying to see if we can find a common goal to solve all these issues.

“At least to make sure that our athletes are not affected in the future. As you can see, the situation has reached the International Paralympic Committee (IPC), and at the end of the day, we don’t want it to go any further,” stressed Hamukwaya.

He stated that the country is affiliated with the IPC.

“It is still our international body that gives us opportunities to take part in competitions like the Olympic Games and any other world championships.

“It is a sad situation to see Namibia, and hopefully even myself; I don’t want to see such a situation going on for such a long time, and hopefully, very soon, we can find a common goal and see how we can really put everybody around the table and solve this issue for the sake of the athletes,” said Hamukwaya.

Hamukwaya added that the Commonwealth Games run under the jurisdiction of the Namibia National Olympic Committee (NNOC).

“Until they (NNOC) get the information and everything, with the administration issue that we are having, it’s quite difficult for me to comment on that, but it still falls under the NNOC.”

Namibia was absent from the Paralympics until 2004, when it entered a single representative in men’s powerlifting.

In 2008 with a single competitor, Reginald Benade in the men’s discus and shot put, Namibia won its first Paralympic medal, a bronze in the discus discipline.

Namibia achieved its first Paralympic gold medal in the 2012 London Summer Paralympics when Johanna Benson, Namibia’s only female athlete, won the 200m race in her division.

At the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Paralympics, Namibia clinched two silver and two gold medals in the athletics categories, thanks to Ananias Shikongo (gold medal) and compatriot Johannes Nambala, who won two silver medals in the T13 100m and 400m, respectively.

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