LOBAMBA – Team Eswatini has sent a six-member delegation to the Commonwealth Youth Games.
This was announced by Eswatini Olympic and Commonwealth Games Association (EOCGA) Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Maxwell Jele yesterday during the send-off at the association’s premises at Lobamba. Team Eswatini, comprising two officials and four athletes, will leave this morning for Trinidad and Tobago for the games billed for August 4-11, 2023. The two officials are Chief de Mission Lee-Ann Young and Team Manager Zama Tsabedze. The two swimmers are Damien de Sousa and Hayley Hoy, while two athletes are Mayibongwe Vilakati and Sibusisiwe Mabuza.
confident
“We will be competing in two codes - athletics and swimming. We are confident of the preparations that team Eswatini has undertaken. Hayley Hoy is fresh from the World Aquatics Championships in Japan, and the rest of the athletes have been in camp over the past two weeks,” said Jele. He said the Commonwealth Youth Games were following the games, which were held in Birmingham last year. “The athletes were also at the Region V Youth Games that were held in Lilongwe-Malawi in December, last year. In this regard, they are a perfect platform for our young athletes to showcase their skills and make the country proud. These games come exactly a year before the Paris 2024 Olympic,” he said. Meanwhile, the delegation leader, Lee-Ann Young explained that Mayibongwe Vilakati will compete in the 800m and 1 500m. Mabuza will compete in 100m and 200m.
Meanwhile, de Sousa and Hoy will compete in the 50 and 100 freestyle as well as 50 metres breaststroke. “We are going to represent our country well. We have prepared well and are hoping for the best. As this is a youth team, we are going to grab this opportunity with both hands and hopefully we will come back with a lot of experience,” said Young.
