'It was a huge part of my youth career' - Nene applauds SALGA Games as he looks toward jam-packed 2025 season
Olympian Zakithi Nene believes that the South African Local Government Association (SALGA) games are great building block for kids to launch their athletic careers. The SALGA Games which are annual collaboration between the KwaZulu-Natal Department of Sports and Recreation and other key stakeholders, invite young athletes from across all of KZN's provincial districts to come together for a weekend of competition. Nene, who hails in uMnambithi, is a graduate of those games. The 26-year-old 400m specialist says the upcoming athletes should draw inspiration from athletes like him.
"The SALGA games formed a huge part of my upbringing as an athlete. I started competing at the SALGA games at age 15, where I was up against athletes who were 17 years old. I see these games as a mini Olympics - as they are preparing athletes for the bigger picture. To say I went to from this grassroots development level to where I am at the moment makes me happy. I hope kids who are competing will draw inspiration from me that Olympics are not far fetched," explains Nene who is the holder of a 44.74 personal best time.
Featuring a multitude of disciplines such as athletics, netball, football, amateur boxing, martial arts and even ballroom dancing, the 2024 edition of the SALGA Games took place from 5-8 December in the city of eThekwini under the slogan #WhereChampionsAreMade. Now an Olympian who has represented South Africa at both the 2022 and the 2023 World Championships, the 26-year-old New Balance Ambassador further applauded the Provincial government for staging such games and hopes other provinces can follow suit.
"We must thank Department of Sports for doing such games. I'm happy with the continuity as there was a decline a few years ago. Let's hope other provinces also host such games in order to look after the development of young athletes," he said.
Speaking about his future plans, Nene who is coached by Victor Vaz, believes next year will be crucial. The World Athletics calendar is congested as there will be World Athletics Indoor and World Athletics outdoor Championships. The Olympic semi-finalist believes proper planning is important as he wants to give it his all at the World Championship taking place in Tokyo, Japan.
"The World Championships is the main goal for me next year. I'm also looking to compete on the indoor circuit as well as some European meets and the Diamond League as the building blocks for the World Championships. So next year is going to be a busy year. I'm going to try to plan my season accordingly so I can peak at the right time for World Championships," he concluded.
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