This appears to be a concerning trend where there is reward at the end of the day, but there are zero funds to prepare athletes before a tournament. Recently, the Minister of Youth, Gender, Sport, and Culture, Tumiso Rakgare, indicated that athletes who participated at the Africa Senior Championships in Cameroon, would get P50, 000 for gold, P30, 000 for silver and P20, 000 for bronze. With the talent that Botswana poses in athletics and with a fairly large contingent, the government could easily have paid P1million in prize money. This money it seems, is always readily available, or may be its shifted from other votes as and when athletes win. But the same money is nowhere to be found for the team's preparations. There is everything right with rewarding athletes for their sweat, after all the ultimate aim is to make a living out of their chosen careers.
And we appreciate that sports is usually a short career and athletes must amass as much as possible in a short space. But it will appear the approach by local authorities is unsustainable as there is not much attention paid to the seed that is planted. Focus has been placed on the fruit or the harvest regardless of the input. As it stands the netball team will not make it to the annual Singapore Nations Cup, a useful tournament that has become a permanent feature for Botswana players. The reason is that there are no funds. This story is just an island in a sea of such sad scenarios. Countless teams are told they are unable to travel due to lack of funds. But if they miraculously travel, upon return, all of a sudden the cash is available. It will only be appropriate to put the horse before the cart. Channel funds towards preparations, ensure the team trains and camps well, then the fruits will naturally follow.
