shloboe boe
Zimpapers Sports Hub
FROM the world of football to rugby, golf and cricket, Zimbabwean sports teams and athletes made their mark on the continent and beyond.
In this special review, we look back at some of the most significant moments of the past year and examine the lasting impact they will have in the future.
The year 2024 will be remembered for its historic milestones, record-breaking performances and memorable moments that will be etched in the minds of Zimbabwean sports fans for years to come.
Football
Warriors gain fifth Afcon appearance
German coach Michael Nees became the first foreign coach to take Zimbabwe to the Afcon finals, succeeding where many big names failed.
These include German compatriots Reinhard Fabisch and Rudi Gutendorf, Ian Porterfield, Clemens Westerhof, Tom Saintfiet, Klaus Dieter Pagels, and Zdravko Logarusic. The previous five Afcon appearances for the Warriors were under Zimbabwean coaches — Sunday “Mhofu” Chidzambwa (2004 and 2019), Charles Mhlauri (2006), Kalisto Pasuwa (2017) and Norman Mapeza (2021).
An unbeaten run of four matches gave the Warriors an advantage of taking on their bogey opponents without the need to win in the battle for the remaining ticket. The permutations after the October matches were such that Zimbabwe needed a point from the remaining two matches to progress. They would qualify after a draw with Kenya.
Simba Bhora win maiden league title
In only their second top-flight season, Simba Bhora clinched the title with two games to spare, earning the right to represent Zimbabwe in Africa.
The club leadership has confirmed that the team will be participating in the prestigious Caf Champions League competition in August of next year.
By winning the league title, Simba Bhora became the first team from Mashonaland Central to win a Premier Soccer League title.
They joined St Paul’s Musami, Ngezi Platinum and FC Platinum as the only teams outside Harare and Bulawayo to have won the country’s league title.
They added another chapter to the local game when they became the first club to provide five players on the Castle Soccer Stars calendar in the history of the awards, which dates back to 1969.
Top-flight league promotions
Top-flight league promotions this year were also fascinating, with Scottland FC in the Northern Region Division One getting promoted in their maiden season.
In the Southern Region Division One league, ZPC Hwange finally achieved promotion after 35 years of campaigning and at times finishing as runners-up.
Another fairytale story emerged in the Central Region, where Kwekwe United broke a 16-year-old jinx of the city not having Premiership football.
Formed 10 years after the relegation of Lancashire Steel, the last team to play in the top flight, Kwekwe United will give the football-loving city a taste of top-flight football once again.
The city is regarded as one of the country’s football talent hubs, having produced the likes of the late Dream Team star Paul Gundani, Luke Petros-Jukulile, Norman Komani, Petros Sibanda, Malvern Nyakabangwe, Stephen Alimenda, Washington Arubi, Tafadzwa Dube and Justice Majabvi, among many others.
In the Eastern Region league, Triangle made a comeback to the Premiership after a year in Division One.
Mhlophe bounces back
Kenneth Mhlophe bounced back as Highlanders chairman in February after beating his closest rival by 61 votes in elections held at the Bosso Clubhouse. Mhlophe garnered 165 votes to beat the outgoing chair, Johnfat Sibanda, who trailed in second position with 104 votes.
In 2021, Mhlophe a retired colonel and businessman lost by a paltry five votes in a tightly contested election that dislodged him from the position after serving one term.
In the race for the secretary-general, incumbent Morgen Dube got 173 votes, Nsikelelo Mafa Moyo came close at 114, with Rearburn Ndebele getting 69 votes in third.
Kindman Ndlovu was the most popular of the candidates, as he got 230 votes and won the committee member’s post.
Athletics
This was one of the best performances by the sport with strong finishes at the African Games, Senior African Championships and the Olympics.
Isaac Mpofu picked up bronze at the African Games in the 21.1km event, was 16th in the Boston Marathon and 19th in the Olympic final.
Ashley Miller was second in the 100m hurdles in the African Games before settling for bronze in the Doula African Senior Championships where Tapiwanashe Makarawu was second in the 200m.
Chengetai Mapaya finished second in the triple jump with an effort of 16.87m on his comeback year after two years of injury hit seasons.
But the big moment for Zimbabwe was when Makarawu and Makanakaishe Charamba both qualified for the 200m Olympic final in a year they will be remembered for being the first two Zimbabweans to run a sub 20 second 200m.
Makarawu at one stage had the second-best 200m in the indoor circuit and with his 19.93 second outdoor time was in the top five and it came as no surprise when he qualified for the final.
Charamba ran 19.95 seconds a top-10 effort too.
The two sprinters, alongside Mpofu, have given Zimbabwe a glimmer of hope for the 2025 World Championships due in Tokyo, Japan.
Netball
The Gems had a good year picking up bronze medals in Scotland and Namibia as they continue their rise in the sport.
Boxing
Boxing did not have a very brilliant year both in the amateur and professional ranks with few notable performances.
Motoring
Mano Zevgolis won his fourth consecutive Three-Hour Endurance Race title at Bulawayo Motorsport Park on December 7.
Golf
Zimbabwe Golf Association (ZGA) successfully hosted the 2024 All Africa Golf Team Championship (AAGTC), which was held at Bulawayo Golf Club at the end of October.
ZGA volunteered to host the biennial continental tournament after initial hosts Mauritius couldn’t go ahead due to natural disasters.
The tournament — which is the pinnacle of amateur golf in Africa — was smoothly run.
Eleven countries participated at the biggest amateur golf event in the continent with perennial winners, South Africa reclaiming the trophy after they had lost it to Morocco in Egypt in 2022.
Also worth noting in the year 2024 was the return of the country’s second biggest golf tournament, the Lowveld Pro-Am, which was sponsored to the tune of US$60 000 by Tongaat Hulletts. It made a return to the local scene after a decade-long hiatus.
Cricket
While there are a number of highlights from the cricket season, one that stand outs will be the historic
Boxing Day Test match that was held at Queens Sports Club.
Prior to the recently ended game, which was a draw, the country had hosted only one Boxing Day Test, when Zimbabwe faced England in 1996 in a drawn match severely affected by rain at Harare Sports Club.
Since then, Zimbabwe’s only other Boxing Day Tests have been played away from home — against New Zealand in Wellington in 2000 and against South Africa in the inaugural pink-ball, day-night, four-day Test in Port Elizabeth in 2017.
Zimbabwe also played Sri Lanka in a Test that started on December 27, 2001, in Colombo.
Zimbabwe has never played a New we Year’s Test, either at home or abroad.
Rugby
In 2023, the Sables were inactive, but have had a memorable 2024 season that saw them not only play and win seven matches —including victory over Namibia —but also bag their first Africa Cup title in 12 years.
Compared to the previous year, 2024 was an unusually busy year for the Sables. But, they managed to sail through, achieving a remarkable feat of winning all the seven matches that they played.
To kick-start their busy season, Zimbabwe registered an uninspiring 32-28 win over neighbours Zambia in a game that was played during the Mwana Group International Schools Rugby Festival in Harare in May, marking the start of the Pieter Benade era, that has so far, managed to bring nothing but smiles to the rugby faithful in Zimbabwe.
In the return leg at Lusaka Rugby Grounds in June, Zimbabwe managed to make it back-to-back victories with a 22-17 win.
The two victories managed to hold them in good state for the rugby that was yet to come.
It was the Africa Cup that followed soon after, and the Sables managed to register an impressive three wins on the trot, making it five out of five — including the Zambia games.
Benade’s men, who received a boost in the coming in of former Australia Under-20 fly-half Ian Prior, who immediately made his presence felt, opened their Africa Cup campaign with a 22-20 win over Uganda before going on to end a 23-year jinx against Namibia. With the odds stacked against them, Zimbabwe convincingly beat Namibia 32-10 in the tournament’s semi-final, their first win over the Welwitschias in 23 years.
The last time the Sables beat Namibia was in 2001, where they registered a hard-fought 27-26 victory. It was in Bulawayo in July of that year that they had last recorded victory over Namibia.
They would go on to face Algeria in the final and record a comfortable 29-3 win over Algeria to be crowned the African Champions.
Zimbabwe’s season was then rounded off by a 67-22 win.
In the last week of the year, tag rugby brought former Springboks star Siya Kolisi to Victoria Falls for a series of coaching clinics.
Volleyball
UZ rise and shine
UZ Wolves beat Highlanders 3-1 in the Region Five Club Championships held in Botswana two weeks ago.
It was a great outing for Zimbabwe clubs who triumphed in an event attended by several national champions from the region.
Zimbabwe Volleyball Association president, Mxolisi Ndlovu, attributed this to the robust Premier Volleyball League in which clubs play both national and provincial volleyball.
Ten clubs are relegated each season making the relegation race quite hot.
mbulelo smpofu
