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Ndumbaro asks French government to help Tanzania qualify for Olympic Games

Tanzania's long distance runner Alphonce Simbu. PHOTO | COURTESY

By  Imani Makongoro

[email protected]

Mwananchi Communications Limited

What you need to know:

  • Tanzania is required to compete in the qualifying events, and only competitors from five countries will get the chance to feature in the Games.

Dar es Salaam. The Minister of Arts, Culture, and Sports, Damas Ndumbaro, has asked the French Embassy in the country to work closely with the Tanzania Olympic Committee (TOC) and National Sports Council (NSC) ahead of next year’s Olympic Games scheduled to take place in Paris, France.

Ndumbaro said that Tanzania has many talented sportsmen and women who can make the country proud at the games.

Speaking after officiating the signing of a cooperation agreement on the Basata Vibes project between the French Embassy and the National Arts Council on Thursday Dr Ndumbaro said the government was not happy to see so few sportsmen and women qualify for the Olympic Games while other countries are represented by many men and women.

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“We need to see many Tanzanians qualify for the Olympic Games and other international competitions that require qualification marks. I am asking the Embassy of France to work with TOC and NSC so that the country will have many participants who will meet the qualification standards,” said Ndumbaro.

So far, Alphonce Simbu and Gabriel Geay have qualified for the Olympic Games. Tanzania’s last medal win in the Olympic Games was in 1980 in Moscow, through Filbert Bayi and Suleiman Nyambui.

The duo won silver medals in athletics. Apart from various sports, Tanzania will also field competitors in breakdance, also called breaking, in the Paris Games. So far, various competitors, numbering 50, are currently in intensive training every Tuesday at Nafasi Art Space in Dar es Salaam.

Tanzania is required to compete in the qualifying events, and only competitors from five countries will get the chance to feature in the Games.

Each country will send four competitors (two female and two male). Breaking is a style of dance that originated in the United States in the 1970s.

It took form in the lively block parties in the Bronx, emerging from hip-hop culture, and is characterised by acrobatic movements, stylized footwork, and the key roles played by the DJ (disc jockey) and the MC (master of ceremonies) during battles.

International competitions were first held all over the world in the 1990s.

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