NewsDay
17 July 2012
Zimbabwe Olympic Committee (ZOC) chief executive Anna Mguni has defended the composition of officials accompanying the Zimbabwe team at the Olympic Games in London.
Questions have been raised over the high number of officials in the delegation for the Games, who in this case double the number of athletes who will represent the country. The official delegation for the Games released by ZOC last week has seven athletes and 14 officials including the ZOC president Admire Masenda and Mguni.
The delegation will also include the Minister of Education Sports Arts and Culture David Coltart and three ZOC guests: Harare Mayor Muchadeyi Masunda, Sports and Recreation Commission chairman Joseph James and the principal director in Coltart’s ministry Paul Damasane.
“I don’t believe that we have more officials than athletes in the delegation to the Olympics Games.
We have an entourage which includes coaches for all the disciplines where we are represented, the physiotherapists, the Press attaché and I believe it’s proportional to the athletes who have qualified.
“In addition we have the chef de mission Busi Chindove, and we have had to appoint an assistant chef de mission as we have a peculiar situation where rowing will take place away from where the other disciplines will be held. As for the ZOC chief executive and president, I think it is because of the high nature of the games. If it was the Warriors who have qualified for the World Cup I don’t think it would be an issue of if Cuthbert Dube and Jonathan Mashingaidze were part of the delegation.â€
Mguni also highlighted that her association was entitled to have invited guests depending on the number of qualified athletes and in this case they had invited three guests.