After enduring a difficult year due to Covid-19, which brought sports to a halt, sports stars are hoping for the better in the New Year and some of them shared their targets with Weekend Nation.
Australia-based netball star Mwawi Kumwenda set the tone, saying helping her club Melbourne Vixens to retain the Suncorp Super Netball Championship is her key target in the New Year.
The lanky shooter turned on a vintage display and was named Player of the Match when she inspired Vixens to beat West Coast Fever 66-64 to win their first premiership since 2014.
“I also look forward to be the best in 2021 through hardwork.
“Helping the Queens to reign supreme with the help of the girls and all those involved, will also be of utmost importance. I want to see the Queens reclaim their position as the continent’s best,” she said.
England-based netballer Joyce Mvula also said she has set her eyes on helping her team Manchester Thunder to retain the Vitality Netball Superleague.
“Last year, the league was cancelled due to Covid-19 in the early stages when we were at the top. It was a painful year being reduced to a sideshow and now I want to help the team defend the title we won in 2018,” she said.
South Africa-based footballer Frank ‘Gabadinho’ Mhango, who won the 2019/20 Premier Soccer League Golden Boot Award with 16 goals, said he has set his eyes on helping his club Orlando Pirates win more silverware.
“I want to win more trophies, especially the league if we can. As for the national team, I want to help the Flames turn the corner by, at least, qualifying for Afcon [Africa Cup of Nations] or reaching the Cosafa Cup final. Those are my targets,” he said from his Johannesburg base.
Flames coach Meck Mwase also said he has set his target as qualifying for the continental showpiece.
“Well, the good thing is that it is still in our hands. If we win our remaining two matches [against Uganda at home and South Sudan away], then we will qualify.
“But that is just my target and it can only be achieved with good preparations and commitment from everyone involved, especially the players themselves,” he said.
Former world boxing champions Isaac ‘Golden Boy’ Chilemba, who was inactive the whole of last year due to Covid-19, said he hopes to be active this year.
Said the South Africa-based boxer: “I just hope that 2021 will manage to get rid of Covid-19 and get our lives back on track. I also hope to have two to three fights.”
Professional golfer Paul Chidale said: “Last year I made several cuts, this year is about bringing trophies to Malawi by being in the top three.”
A world in lockdown, being devoured by something that came from out of the blue, some kind of deadly flu, so contagious it has made a mockery of borders, plunging the globe into a state of disorder.
