Star runner set to make national athletics debut
Zozibini Mpako, 9, from Montclair and a Grade 4 pupil at Ridgeville Primary School, in Westridge, showed her rivals a clean pair of heels in the girls’ under-10 100m sprint at the weekend’s Western Cape Primary School’s athletic championships, at Dal Josafat Stadium in Paarl.
The youngster will now represent the province at the national championships, in Polokwane, later this month. She also finished in third place in the 80m dash to collect a bronze medal.
In a sport where every second counts, it’s hardly surprising that Zozibini loves athletics as much as she loves mathematics, because both involve challenges and a lot of counting, she said.
As this will be her first appearance at a national championships, the youngster is understandably a little nervous about what to expect.
“I haven't experienced that but I'm pretty sure that whatever happens will be a great lesson for me,” she said.
Her mother Cikizwa Mpako’s only child, Zozibini is an all-round sporty girl, who also loves netball because, she says, the rules are easy to follow and she grew up with soccer-mad cousins with whom she spent countless hours running from end-to-end on the field.
“I always believe in her because she is passionate in everything she does. I was so proud finally seeing her because she's been telling me that she wants to be an athlete,” her mother said.
“But I told her to not forget focusing on her studies and to work on her dream of being an athlete after ensuring that her school work is up to date.”
Ridgeville returned to schools athletics this year for the first time since the Covid years, said coach Ryan Matroos.
“This being our first year back and the inter-schools taking place early in February, we did not have much time to gather and work on getting a full team to take part at the inter-schools competition,” he said.
“However, we took a team of about 45 athletes just so we could get our foot in the door again after Covid. On the day, we were one of nine schools in the Westridge cluster to participate.
“Our goal was to go out there and enjoy the day knowing that we gave our kids an opportunity to participate whether we win or loose.
“On this day Zozibini made Ridgeville proud and won all her races which then allowed her to qualify for the district championships, which she won and did exceptionally well at,” he said.
“At this point she was selected for the district team and participated in the WP championships where she won gold for 100m, silver for relay and bronze for 80m sprints,” said Matroos.
Matroos and his colleagues were over the moon, as Zozibini made the WP team that took part in the Western Cape championships in Paarl, at the weekend, this time winning gold in the 100m sprint and bronze in the 80m sprints.
“What an amazing experience it was. She is now part of the Western Cape team going to the SA champs in Polokwane,” said Matroos, quick to point out that their journey came with its fair share of challenges.
“Its been a tough few weeks,” he said, “having to go through all the motivational and mental talks with Zozibini to make her realise that this is not a joke.
“There were many times she felt like she was tired and wanted to give up or slow down a few meters before the finish line. As time went by, she started taking those talks seriously and I had faith that she will make it to the top,” he said.
“One of the biggest challenges we face is the fact we are not able to use our field and we do not have any equipment to train our athletes,” he said.
“She will leave for Polokwane next week for the SA champs to represent the Western Cape and will need sports gear - tracksuits, T-shirts, takkies and toiletries - to sustain her when she is not wearing her Western Cape clothing,” he said.
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