Kirsty Coventry bound for Rio 2016

By Nehanda Radio On Aug 6, 2015 517

By Sikhumbuzo Moyo

The government has congratulated Zimbabwe’s swimming queen Kirsty Coventry after the iconic Olympic gold medalist qualified for a record fifth consecutive time for the biggest sporting showcase in the world.

Coventry will represent Zimbabwe in the 100M backstroke at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, after clocking the qualification time at the ongoing 16th FINA World Swimming Championships in Kazan, Russia, on Monday night.

Despite finishing 10th in the semi-finals, her finishing time of one minute 0.09 seconds was good enough to book her place in Brazil for the mega games. She first made an Olympic appearance as a 16-year-old teenager in 2000 games in Sydney, Australia.

Following her milestone achievement on Monday, the government yesterday showered praises on the swimming sensation, describing her as a rare breed that would be difficult to replace or clone.

“She has once again proven that she’s a good ambassador for the country. She has represented not only the nation well, but herself with so much pride and dignity,” said Deputy Minister of Sport, Arts and Culture, Tabeth Kanengoni-Malinga.

“She’s a true Zimbabwean girl that has always remained proud of her origins, especially when we know that she has been offered citizenship by a number of countries, but she still remained resolute that she was a Zimbabwean.”

She said the government would endeavour to protect Coventry’s legacy by ensuring that sporting facilities, especially swimming pools, are well-maintained throughout the country so a future swimming star is discovered.

“We’ve a long way to go in as far as duplicating Kirsty or cloning her, but I hope our sports policy will create a good foundation, but like I said, we sincerely are so proud of Kirsty’s achievement and now she is also ploughing back to the community after she set up the Kirsty Coventry Foundation,” said Kanengoni-Malinga.

Described by President Robert Mugabe as a “golden girl” following her Olympics achievements, while ordinary Zimbabweans refer to her as MaSiziba, Coventry won her first international gold medal in the 2002 Commonwealth Games.

She virtually monopolised the 2007 All-Africa Games, winning a massive seven gold and three silver medals. In 2013, Coventry embarked on a nationwide tour of Zimbabwe, reaching out to schools in rural areas.

Motivated by the fact that she did not really have a role model as a child, Coventry set out to inspire children to dream big and follow their passions. Her message was broken down into three important values: “Believe in yourself, work hard and persevere — if you keep at it, you will succeed.” The Chronicle

Coventry’s medals