Day: April 28, 2024

WINDHOEK: Mountain bike riders Alex Miller and Monique du Plessis were on Saturday crowned national champions at the Nedbank Namibia Cross Country (XCO) championship held at the IJG Trails in Kleine Kuppe. The Namibian Cycling Federation (NCF) organised the event and crowned its national champions from the junior to the senior level in the XCO categories. Miller and Du Plessis were on the day in a class of their own dominating their respective categories. Miller who continues to show exceptional form finished the seven-round laps of the almost five-kilometre circuit in one hour, 30 minutes and 59 seconds (01:30:59) despite stopping for almost a minute to fix his punctured tyre in the fourth lap. He was three minutes and 44 seconds ahead of Kevin Lowe who started a minute later in the Under-23 category. Lowe was crowned the U-23 men's champion after completing the seven laps in a time of 01:33:15 and behind Miller. Tristan de Lange who represented Namibia at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics in the road race event also made an appearance after being away from the track for almost a year. He finished second in the elite men's category, nine minutes behind Miller in a time of 01:39:12. Danzel de Koe finished third in the elite men category and was almost a lap behind in a time of 01:42:19. Apart from De Lange and De Koe all the other elite riders were lapped or retired from the race. Meanwhile in the elite women's category Du Plessis dominated her field finishing the five laps in a time of 01:22:19. She was 10 minutes ahead of second-placed Jean-Marie Mostert who completed her race in a time of 01:32:48. The last podium position was supposed to go to Mimi Hough, but she was lapped by Du Plessis, therefore couldn't finish the race when the leader crossed the line. Meanwhile, the U-23 men's category podium spots went to Lowe who was followed by Hugo Hahn and Theuns van der Westhuizen in second and third respectively. The women's category only had one rider competing in the event. Ashanti Auchas completed her three laps in a time of 01:24:58. In an interview with the media after the race, Miller said he had a good time on the track and is looking forward to the African Championships in Morocco and his European Tour. 'This was a good race, I decided to put my foot down from the start because I believed in my form. I am now looking forward to representing my country at the African championships in Morocco,' he said. Meanwhile, Du Plessis said the windy conditions on the day made the race tough, but she enjoyed the competition and now refocuses her attention on her trip to Europe where she will be competing in the International Cycling Union (UCI) African Junior Team for about six months. Source: The Namibia Press Agency

WINDHOEK: Namibian sprinter Gilbert Hainuca became the second Namibian male athlete ever to run under 10 seconds, when he put up an impressive performance at the Athletics Namibia National Championships held at the Independence Stadium. The 100m and 200m sprinter on Saturday posted his first sub-10 second run, making him the second fastest man on Namibian soil to run that time in a 100m event. Hainuca won the men's 100m final with an impressive time of 9.86 seconds at the weekend's AN national championships here. On 03 July 1996, Namibian Olympic silver medallist Frank Fredericks clocked a time of 9.86 seconds in Lausanne, Switzerland, which has remained the national record for 28 years. His time was matched by Hainuca on Saturday. On 18 May 2002, while competing in Nairobi, Kenya, Fredericks ran even faster, clocking in at 9.85 seconds. But this time did not become the new national record, as the wind was measured at +3.0 by the wind gauge. In an interview with Nampa on Sunday, Hainuca who retained his 100m and 200m titles at the nationals expressed his joy over his achievement. 'It feels great to have run that time. This event was approved by World Athletics, therefore I now need another event where I can prove that I can run that time again and then I can qualify for the Olympics,' he said. The national champion said he is hopeful that he will get a race probably in Europe so he can make his sub-10 record legal. 'Hard work does pay off. As an athlete, I have to work hard, study and train, so I would like to thank myself for not giving up. I would also like to thank my coach, Letu Hamhola for always believing in me, and the Vugf family for their unwavering support. Credit for my success should also go to my parents, friends, and other family members who have always been there for me, providing a helping hand and support whenever I need it,' he said. Hainuca stated that he felt confident when he stepped on the track and used all he had learned at training to execute a good race. Source: The Namibia Pr ess Agency

WINDHOEK: The crowning of the 2023/24 Debmarine Namibia Premiership champions at Independence Stadium on Saturday was marred by supporters invading the football field. The chaotic award ceremony saw hundreds of African Stars supporters flock onto the football pitch to be near their players as they received the trophy for once again being crowned Champions of the Debmarine Namibia Premiership. Two brilliant goals in the second half from Ngunzu Salazar and Willy Stephanus sealed the deal for the Katutura-based Namibian football giants to retain their title, while at the same time relegating Orlando Pirates. At the end of the match, the Namibia Football Association (NFA) organised a ceremony to crown the champions, but this joyous moment was interrupted by scenes of the champions' supporters who also wanted a piece of history as they posed for pictures with the trophy, causing chaos during the award ceremony. In an interview with Nampa on Sunday, a disappointed Salomo Hei, African Stars' chairperson said the y are happy to have retained the trophy after a gruelling season, but the awarding ceremony left a lot to be desired. 'The first thing we noticed when on stage is there were no medals. Last year when we were crowned champions it was done by the Normalisation Committee and things moved smoothly, we had a team picture but as I speak today, we don't have any team pictures of being crowned champions because supporters were everywhere on the football field,' he said. Hei added that the security detail at the field was not up to standard as people were unaware of who was doing what and when. 'We did not know who was going to give the cheques and the trophy. The Normalisation Committee did things much better; we can go back to that award ceremony and show you photos and how supporters were organised to be in the stands,' Hei said while stating that they would have wanted things to be run better. He also said that players were asking for medals and there were no medals, therefore it's essential to allow the Premi er League to run its affairs independently so that those in the office of the Football Association can focus on other matters. 'The current football leaders are doing their utmost best to see football played in the country which at times make work too much for them. It's important to allow the Premier League to be an independent body doing its administration,' Hei said. He also stated that not having the Football Association president at the crowning ceremony allows for 'these small things to happen because the head of the house is not around'. When the NFA was approached for comment on the matter, its communications department promised to revert but failed to do so before the story was published. Source: The Namibia Press Agency

WINDHOEK: Fillipus Nghitumbwa, Namibia's Super Bantamweight boxer successfully defended his World Boxing Organisation (WBO) Africa Super Bantam title against DeKang Wang from China. This was Nghitumbwa's first title defence after winning the WBO Africa Super Bantamweight title in December 2023 when he defeated Thato Bonokoane of South Africa. On Saturday, Nghitumbwa, who has a record of 15 fights and 13 wins (12 of which were via knockout), faced an undefeated Asian boxer, DeKang, who has a record of nine fights and nine wins. To retain his title, Nghitumbwa delivered a stunning performance which impressed all three judges, after 12 intense rounds of boxing at the Ramatax Hall in Otjomuise, Windhoek. Despite being known for his knockout ability, Nghitumbwa found it tough to crack DeKang, who gave both Namibian and Chinese boxing fans in attendance value for their money as the two boxers exchanged leather. In the end, all three judges scored in Nghitumbwa's favour, and he successfully retained his title e xtending his record to 14 wins. Speaking after the fight Nghitumbwa said he underestimated his opponent from the start and had to learn the hard way that DeKang was resilient, and it forced him to elevate his performance. 'The win means a lot to me. I will maybe now see myself in the top ten of the world rankings,' he said. DeKang who was handed his first career defeat said the defeat was difficult to accept, but he was optimistic about bouncing back. 'My opponent is a very good competitor, we had a good fight but I am looking forward to my next fight,' DeKang said. Meanwhile, Jeremia Nakathila defeated Evans Sithole, while Immanuel Mungandjera won via a knockout against Tranos Zihove, both from Zimbabwe. Source: The Namibia Press Agency