Eight sport codes have been selected to represent Malawi at African Games, formerly the All Africa Games, Times Sport has learnt.
The 13th edition of African Games will be held in Ghana between March 8 and 23, 2024.
Initially, authorities had planned that Malawi would be represented by nine sport disciplines but basketball has failed to make the grade as it is not among the top 16 teams on the continent.
Following the development, Malawi will participate in athletics, judo, swimming, table tennis, lawn tennis, boxing, beach volleyball and taekwondo.
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Malawi National Council of Sports (MNCS) Public Relations and Communications Officer Edgar Ntulumbwa confirmed the development, saying preparations for the Games are underway.
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“Malawi’s basketball is not rated among top 16 teams in Africa and, as such, is ineligible to take part in the Games. Stakeholders wanted basketball to be part of Team Malawi, but they are ranked outside the required bracket.
“We expect all the sport codes to finalise preparations by February 21 as Team Malawi is set to leave for Accra, Ghana, on March 5,” Ntulumbwa said.
However, Ntulumbwa could not be drawn to disclose the budget for the Games, insisting the process of coming up with the expenditure plan has not been finalised.
Basketball Association of Malawi General Secretary Peter Gomani said it was a big setback that the sport code will not participate in the Games.
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“We have just received communication that we will not travel as we are not among the top 16 teams. This is because we do not take part in a lot of international competitions to improve our ranking. We have been notified that they can fuse us in if one of the teams withdraws,” Gomani said.
