Uganda and Africa’s seed1 in the wheelchair 1 category Sarah Nazziwa has won a Bronze medal in the Egypt para-badminton championships.
Uganda took a team of seven players but managed to bag one medal at the championships that started on the 23rd till the 28th of January.
This bronze marks Nazziwa’s first foreign medal since joining para-badminton in 2022. Nazziwa’s journey to the bronze medal started with a 2-1 (19-21, 21-11, 21-5) victory over Egypt’s Hoda Shokry Hasaan in the first round.
In round 2, she lost to Guang-Chiou Hu from Chinese Taipei 2-0 ( 21-4, 21-7), but progressed before losing to Brazilian Auricelia Nunes Evangelista 2-0 (21-3, 21-5) in the semi-finals.
Nazziwa attributes her success to hard work and consistent training before she left the country for these championships.
“I would have performed much better but, my opponents had better wheelchairs. If it wasn’t for the tough preparations I would have returned empty-handed, she revealed to Nnalubaale Sports.
Sekyondwa Mark who went with the team as the head coach says despite the challenges, players performed very well compared to previous events.
Success in Thailand a must
With only one event left to accumulate more points and qualify for the Paralympics in Paris, the focus now shifts to the World Championships that will be held in Pattaya, Thailand From the 19th -the 25th of February 2024.
Uganda Badminton Association CEO Simon Mugabi stressed that the pressure is now to see that they get money and send players to Pattaya, Thailand.
Ritah there is still room for better Performance just keep going girl pic.twitter.com/y7Pu0n1iDY
— Ritah Asiimwe PLY (@Ritahasiimwe1) January 29, 2024
“Our players are going to start preparing as soon as Monday (today) as they get ready for the World Championships,” Mugabi noted.
Away from Nazziwa, other players namely; Hassan Mubiru, Ali Mukasa, Elizabeth Mwesigwa, Rose Nansereko, Sumin Mutesi, and Asiimwe Rita all had fair outings.
Courtesy Photos
