Local players have been urged to work hard if they desire to succeed in sports.
National Sports Council (NSC) Chairman, Dioniz Malinzi
The call was made over the weekend by Dar es Salaam Gymkhana Club (DGC) Chairman, Dioniz Malinzi, who is also the National Sports Council (NSC) chief, when closing the four-day Acacia Open international tennis tournament at the club.
He said there is no shortcut to success, so players have to work hard to realise their goals. “The secret of success is to work hard. I encourage those who did not do well at this tournament not to sit back.
There is always a second chance in life, but all depends on individual efforts, desire and hard work,” Malinzi said. Malinzi handed over trophies and cash prizes to winners of the tournament in which all top prizes in both men’s and women’s single and doubles went to visitors.
The Acacia Mining-sponsored tournament brought together 60 top players from Kenya, Uganda, Burundi, Zambia, Rwanda, Cameroon and hosts Tanzania.
The company injected about 8,000 US dollars, with 5,950 US dollars being prize money for the winners of different categories.
Men’s and ladies singles winners Zambian Edgar Kazembe and Shufaa Changawa of Kenya were awarded 700 US dollars each, while runners-up David Oringa of Uganda and Kenyan Evelyn Otula received 500 US dollars each.
Kazembe and Oringa also shared 300 US dollars as men’s doubles champions, while Shufaa and Otula did the same in the ladies category. Kenyans Fazal Khan and Pegie Mbugua also took home 300 US dollars each for reaching the men’s and women’s singles semi-finals.
The pair also shared 200 US Dollars with Tanzanians Omar Abdallah and Rehema Athumani for finishing in the doubles semis.
This means the six visitors and others who reached the quarter-finals shared more than 4,000 US dollars out of the 5,950 US dollars prize money that forced Malinzi to encourage local players to work hard.
Tournament director Inger Njau, who is also DGC tennis secretary, said the tournament went well and was happy to see players from abroad coming to support the event.
She appealed to local players to have an ambition to succeed. “It’s good to have best players from outside the country as this will help our players to open eyes and learn from them,” she said.
“Local players have to make their own efforts to look for sponsors and feature in different tournaments in and outside the country to improve.
As leaders we will try to organise competitions, but they have to look beyond that. “As you know, the tennis development programme is based on juniors, senior players have to make their efforts.
Kazembe and Oringa are a good example as they find their own sponsors to come and play.” Njau thanked the sponsor for making it possible.
Kazembe thanked Acacia Mining and DGC for staging the tournament and encouraged local players to work hard and step into his shoes as he is getting older.
By MBONILE BURTON, Tanzania Daily News