Building up to COSASSA 2020

The inter-high school competitions scheduled for January and February are where it all begins: This is where talent is spotted, selected and sanctioned to the next level.
ELIZABETH JOSEPH
Ester Kamati

Thereafter, the Zonal competitions take place until 15 February, which lead up to the Regionals. Up until the end of March, the regal (sub-regionals) events take place, where the 14 regions are clustered into four zones, namely Oshana, Ohangwena, Oshikoto and Omusati competing in Oshakati; Erongo, Otjozondjupa and Kunene competing in Swakopmund; Khomas, //Kharas, Omaheke and Hardap competing in Windhoek; and Kavango East and West as well as Zambezi competing in Rundu.

Next on the schedule are the qualifiers for the Engen Grand Prix on 14 March to select the top eight athletes in each age group, for each event and in every category, and who are invited to the Nationals. The Nationals take place on 17 April after schools close, while the Coca-Cola National Grand Prix is scheduled for 18 April in Windhoek, where – based on performance in the U13, U15 and U17 age groups – representatives are selected for COSASSA.

COSASSA 2020, which was scheduled to take place in Zimbabwe next year, will now be hosted in Durban (South Africa) as from 8 May.

According to NSSU executive Soli Duiker, the team has made efforts to add more value to the COSASSA games for member states, “because it is a platform where our youth can perfect their skills and their abilities”.

The COSASSA board has also applied to become a member of the Africa Sports Association to ensure that even after COSASSA events, the teams continue to compete internationally. Duiker added that COSASSA can then be used as a qualifier for the international U20 Youth Games. “That is the forum where we want to make school sports in Africa more important,” Duiker said.

The respective sport and education ministries address the issue of physical education in schools, while working towards strengthening sports development.

COSASSA member countries in SADC:

South Africa

Botswana

Zambia

Zimbabwe

Namibia

Angola

Eswatini