Chris Theko
The Lesotho Netball Association (LNA) is hosting a one-day Netball tournament tomorrow (May 15, 2021) with the aim to revive the sport across the country.
The tournament will also see the return of Netball activities since the sport was suspended at the back of the Covid-19 outbreak in Mid-March last year.
LNA Public Relations Officer (PRO) Telang Machela said the one-day tournament is one way to revive netball activities in Lesotho and will be held at the Lesotho Defence Force (LDF) grounds.
“The purpose of the tournament prior to the league games is to bring the players back together, with this we want to help restore their confidence and also their fitness,” Machela said.
He said the tournament is also aimed at informing and educating the players on how they can enforce Covid-19 rules and regulations during the trainings and the various upcoming tournaments.
He added that the association is well-prepared to resume the games following a protracted halt since last year, adding that the equipment necessary for the games’ resumption such as Personal Protective Equipment is now available.
Teams to participate in the tournament have been urged to bring along their own outfit and equipment for safety.
“The association is expecting about 12 teams and other interested teams not registered with the league are welcome to register for this particular tournament. The registration has been ongoing for a week and will be continuing on the day,” he said.
He also added that the tournament would be helpful in the preparations for the upcoming African Union Sports Council (AUSC) Region 5 Games which will be held in December 2021.
“As preparation for the AUSC Region 5 Games, the LNA will be having a number of tournaments like this one and also taking part in a number of some outside the country such as the African Netball Tournament that is scheduled for August 2021 and will be hosted in Namibia and the men’s Netball Championship that will be held in Durban.
“The association is currently trying to source sponsorships and we are open to such sponsorships because we are also going to be hosting our own tournaments,” he said.
According to Machela, the pending league games are expected to resume on May 29 and the call for teams’ registration for the 2021 season league games will be made upon the completion of the 2020 league season.
