Singapore bound netball players urged to behave
Calistus Kolantsho | Tuesday January 20, 2015 13:22
The players are Violet Oneile, Letang Mogotlhwane, Hildah Binang and Sarona Hans.
Speaking during the send-off ceremony for the players held at Blue Tree yesterday, Botswana Netball Association (BONA) patron, Botlogile Tshireletso said the players would not only be representing themselves, but the country. Players will stay in Singapore until February.
BONA president, Tebogo Lebotse-Sebego said her association is the first to endorse the Brighton Plus Helsink Declaration on Women and Sports, which recognises the important role that sport and physical activity play in the lives of girls and women.
She said it is obvious the distribution of power in many aspects is skewed towards men.
She noted that when relating to recognition and reward, female sports remains in the shadows of their male counterparts.
“The stereotypes that perpetuate this are visible in the continued tendency by the leadership and the media to idolise male sports, and we know that for a female athlete to receive the same recognition bestowed upon her male counterpart, she has to work 10 times as hard,” said Lebotse-Sebego.
She said netball remains the biggest women sport in the world, but it is not played at the Olympics.
Lebotse-Sebego pointed out that the next three years are important in the development of netball in Botswana as the country will host the 2017 World Netball Cup.
She stated that it would be the first time the World Cup is held in Africa and Botswana needs to impress.
For her part, International Working Group (IWG) on Women and Sport secretary general, Game Mothibi said the four players would be ambassadors of the IWG during their stay in Singapore.
She said the players would play an important role in getting more people to attend the IWG conference that will be held in Botswana in 2018.
Mothibi announced that Lebotse-Sebego is IWG ambassador locally and her role amongst others is to get all sporting codes to sign the declaration.
One of the players who left for Singapore, Hans said their roles, as IWG ambassadors will be to encourage more women to participate in sport.