Tokyo-2020 Paralympic Games: Mozambican delegation on their way

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Tokyo-2020 Paralympic Games: Mozambican delegation on their way

8:29 CAT | 18 Aug 2021

Photo: O País

The first group of the Mozambican delegation to the Paralympic Games in Tokyo-2020, which will take place between 24 August and 5 September, left this Tuesday for the Japanese city of Ehime, where it will complete a pre-training period of about a week.

To this end, the Mozambican delegation said goodbye on Monday morning to the Secretary of State for Sports (SED), Gilberto Mendes. But far from being just an act of farewell, the occasion heard a litany of complaints from the Paralympic Committee of Mozambique.

“We are well prepared sports-wise, but we are facing logistical difficulties: we have a deficit in accommodation and food for three members of the delegation, and pocket money for the entire delegation,” said Zeca Chaúque, president of the Mozambique Paralympic Committee, when he was given the floor by Gilberto Mendes at the SED amphitheatre.

Mendes was surprised that logistical problems were aired at the delegation’s send-off, and had expected other sentiments.

The Paralympic Committee further argued that it had tried several times to approach the SED, but without success. The outcome was that the two sides decided to meet again after the Tokyo Games to restructure the work mechanisms, and the SED promised to find ways to ameliorate the national team’s participation.

As for the sports field, Gilberto Mendes said there was no pressure on the Mozambican delegation, except to “honour the flag and the third place achieved by Edmilsa in Rio-2016. Give joy to the young people who are struggling hard in Cabo Delgado”.

After their stay in Ehime, the delegation will proceed to Tokyo, the venue of the games, and take up residence in the Olympic Village on August 24th. They will return to Mozambique on the 13th of September.

Mozambique is taking two athletes – Edmilsa Governo and Hilário Chavela – in the T-13 category (athletes with visual difficulties), with whom go our podium dreams. Of these, Rio de Janeiro-2016 bronze medallist Edmilsa Governo is perhaps the country’s best hope of a podium at the event, which will mark Hilário Chavela’s paralympic debut.

The Mozambique mission to the Paralympic Games is headed by Luís Rodrigues, and includes the chairman of the Mozambique Paralympic Committee, Zeca Chaúque, a health specialist, and the athletes’ trainers, Narciso Faquir and Fernando Lucas, trainers of Edmilsa and Hilário Chavela respectively.

Source: Noticias