No weightlifters automatic qualification for 2012 Olympics
WAM has since organised a tournament for weightlifters to be held at the College of Medicine in Blantyre on February 25, to select athletes to send to Kenya in March.
“We are giving them about a month to work themselves so as to be in shape for the selection. Only three athletes (including one female) will travel to Kenya,” WAM president Richard Kuwali told The Nation on Saturday.
Malawi weightlifters failed to attend the 2011 All Africa Games in Mozambique and the Olympics offers them a chance to perform at a global stage.
“The trip to Kenya is being funded by the Malawi Olympic Committee (MOC). We are trying to talk to them if we can send to Kenya more that three athletes as we feel we need to have several options,” said Kuwali.
He announced that body-builders will also compete for money at the College of Medicine as they will not be part of the Olympic programme
“We have arranged prizes for them in various categories,” he said.
In a related development, the International Weightlifting Federation (IWF) has donated equipment to WAM. But Kuwali said he is yet to get the monetary value of the equipment. The equipment, which includes bar bells, is still in transit, according to Kuwali.
