Story by Lawrence Trusida, Sports Editor
ZIMBABWE Olympic Committee (ZOC) is set to hold its elective Congress this Sunday, with two candidates, incumbent Thabani Gonye and seasoned administrator, Ringisai Mapondera vying for the presidency.
The elections will take centre stage as all the board positions are up for grabs, save for the Treasurer where Mxolisi Ndlovu is unopposed.
Incumbent Thabani Gonye and current Head of compliance Ringisai Mapondera will go head-to-head for the presidency.
A legal practitioner, Mapondera, who led Zimbabwe as Chef de Mission believes it is time to reignite Zimbabwe’s Olympic dream and is convinced he has the blueprint to tap into sport-tourism synergies to fund Olympic participation as athletes have struggled for funding.
“We can learn from others and try to apply the same to reignite the Olympic movement in Zimbabwe. We always struggled as an organisation to get sponsorship just to fund Olympic participation, but what I saw were eye-opening approaches primarily around tourism.
“You create synergies and I intend to pursue more engagement with the tourism sector. We have a lot of national parks, breathtaking scenery and that can be showcased through the Olympics. The world is watching, and that’s a major advertising opportunity,” Mapondera said.
Mapondera served just one term on the ZOC board and before that he also led the Zimbabwe Volleyball Association for a single term.
Seven candidates are vying for the two vice-president positions including former ZIFA Spokesperson Xolisani Gwesela, media practitioner Merit Munzwembiri and volleyball administrator Fredrick Ndlovu.
Zimbabwe Karate Union president Joe Rugwete, National Athletics Association president Tendai Tagara, business administrator Godfrey Sunguro and human resources practitioner Cleopas Nyangoni are also in the running for the vice presidency.
14 candidates are also looking to be elected to the ZOC board, with seven committee member positions up for grabs and candidates such as Olympian Abel Chimukoko, Sports health expert Abigail Mnikwa and basketball administrator Charmaine Chamboko are among those in the race.
The elections are set for Sunday in Harare.
