WINDHOEK – Seven athletes with disabilities and four guides are preparing for the 2016 Berlin Open Grand Prix to be held from 16 to 17 July in Berlin, Germany.
The event is one of the 12 Grand Prix organised by the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) annually.
This will be the first time the Namibia Paralympic Committee (NPC) will send athletes to participate in that event.
The athletes are Ananias Shikongo, Elias Ndimulunde, Johannes Nambala, Aloisius Martin, Tobias Moses, Johanna Benson and Lahja Ishitile.
The guides are David Ndeilenga, Andre Orberholster, Sem Simanda and Even Tjiuju.
Speaking to Nampa on Tuesday, NPC Secretary-General Michael Hamukwaya said their aim of participating in the Grand Prix is to help improve the athletes’ ranking ahead of the 2016 Paralympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil in September.
“We want them ranked at least in the top four when we travel to Brazil for the Paralympic Games. We also want our athletes to challenge for world records when we are in Berlin.
“We are pushing our athletes very hard so they can at least run their personal bests at the grand prix,” he said.
Six of the 12 Grand Prix reward athletes with money and medals, and Hamukwaya is hopeful Namibian athletes will earn money for themselves and their families. They depart for Berlin on 12 July and return on 21 July. – Nampa
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