Body lobbies for anti-doping syllabus in primary schools

Umunthu Doping and Anti- Doping has proposed the introduction of an anti-doping syllabus in primary schools for the country to achieve clean sport.

The development comes at a time when research findings indicate that five percent of athletes in Malawi have adequate knowledge on doping.

The Umunthu and Anti-doping Project, with funding from the World Anti-doping Agency, conducted the research in 2021.

Speaking during a two-day workshop in Mzuzu on Saturday, the organisation’s principal investigator Yamikani Ndasauka said it was important to introduce anti-doping lessons in primary schools.

“If we can include an anti-doping syllabus, then the learners will get the message at the right time to make informed decisions,” he said.

Ndasauka asked Malawi Anti- doping Organisation (Mado) to lobby for inclusion of the syllabus in primary schools.

“The issue of doping is serious. We need Mado and the government to help because a lot of athletes are in remote areas and hardly access information,” he said.

On his part, Mado Vice General Secretary Brutus Ndhlovu concurred with Ndasauka, saying it could be a milestone in the fight against doping in sports.

He said some athletes found it difficult to understand the dangers of the malpractice.

“We will engage other stakeholders on this because we really need to reach them while they are young.

“We have developed educational programmes targeting all sport codes so that the athletes should be aware of doping because it is done in different ways, like food and medicine, which negatively affects athletes,” Ndhlovu said.

One of the participants, Malani Kayuni, a boxer, commended the group for conducting the training.

It is an eye opener as most athletes were not aware of the dangers of doping,” he said.