By Noah Silomba
OYDC Zambia – Sports Development Centre is currently hosting several hockey players who are taking part in the Zambezi Hockey test series which has just commenced.
The players from Uganda, Malawi and Zambia kicked off the tournament on a good note as they have all shown their prowess to the fullest.
To kick off the tournament at 8:00 am CAT Uganda took on Malawi in the men’s category and thrashed it 6-1. Host nation Zambia in the women’s category faced Uganda and was held to a 2-2 draw.
National Olympic Committee of Zambia (NOCZ) Secretary General Boniface Kambikambi who was at the OYDC Zambia hockey field witnessing the games has disclosed that the Zambia Hockey Association should be commended for organizing this event adding that many sports associations lack similar competitions which may be used to identify athletes who are good enough to represent Zambia at various competitive games.
Kambikambi says the NOCZ is happy to note that several young athletes have been given a chance to showcase their skills in the tournament which will provide them an opportunity to grow their sporting career.
He has urged the hockey association to continue with the Zambezi Hockey test series saying he is reliably informed that plans to have it be a graded tournament are underway by the hockey executive.
Zambia Hockey Association (ZHA) president Hazel Kennedy who welcomed players for the tournament disclosed that her executive is delighted with the participation of other countries in the tournament stating that this will help keep the sport of hockey growing in the country.
She announced that the Zambezi Hockey test series will continue and will be added to the association’s sports calendar.
Meanwhile, Kennedy has applauded OYDC Zambia management for accommodating all the countries which are taking part in the tournament. She says the opportunity given to OYDC Zambia to host the games will help market the sports facilities and attract other sports codes to use the Centre as it continues to revamp some of the facilities whose lifespan has expired.
The Zambezi Hockey test series which commenced today will come to a close on Sunday and they are being used as a preparatory for the upcoming Africa Cup qualifiers games Zimbabwe will host in August.
