Halimah Nakaayi, the 800m gold medalist at the 2019 World Championships in Doha met Uganda youth olympics athletes in Dakar for career guidance and motivation.
After watching rower Marcel Otim navigate through the waves at Saly Beach West on Tuesday, Nakaayi visited the rest of the team at the Games Village in Diamniadio, and gave them words of encouragement derived from her own journey.
She was at the first edition of the Youth Olympic Games in Singapore in 2010, before going on to represent Uganda at every major competition imaginable. Nakaayi and fellow Olympian Jamilah Lunkuse (who swam for Uganda at the London 2012 and Rio 2016 Olympics) are two of the 31 International Olympic Committee (IOC) Athlete Role Models (ARM) at the Dakar Games.
Meanwhile, Uganda’s young table tennis duo of Joseph Francis Ssebatindira and Jemimah NaKawala, along with their coach Alvin Katumba left Dakar on Friday on return to Uganda. Lone badminton star Ramiah Bukenya and her coach William Kabindi also joined the table tennis duo.
Elsewhere, Mark Arthur Mwase closed Uganda’s swimming campaign at the Dakar youth Olympics by finishing second in his heat of the boys’ 200m freestyle in 2:05.39.
It was the last of the swimming races involving Uganda as Mary Peyton Suubi, Peterson Inhensiko and Zara Marie Mbanga had all wound up their races earlier in a campaign of improved performances and new personal bests for the Ugandan youngsters.
