By GRACE CHAILE –

NATIONAL Olympic Committee (NOC) executive director Brenda Chipande said winning gold at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games is possible but only if athletes are technically prepared.
Speaking during the Olympic Solidarity Technical workshop for judo held at Olympic Youth Development Centre (OYDC) in Lusaka yesterday, Chipande said judo was one of the sports NOC was focusing on the quad.
She said the quad consists of five sporting disciplines that the NOC was targeting to winning the country medals at the 2020 Olympics and other sports include swimming, boxing, athletes and basketball.
Chipande said the five disciplines were the focus for the NOC to build capacity as it targets gold in 2020.
“NOC has set a target of winning gold at the 2020 Olympics and one way is to ensure that athletes are technically prepared. We believe that the more the federations are supported, the more possibility of scoring the target,” she said.
She said that NOC is hopeful that through the Solidarity Technical workshops, athletes’ technical skills will be improved.
International Judo Federation (IJF) expert Hassen Ikhlef said judo in Zambia had improved greatly in the last four years.
Ikhelf said the participation in international competition and minting of medals shows that Zambia was capable of reaching far.
Zambia Judo Association (ZJA) president Alfred Foloko said a contractor from Romania has being picked by IJF to construct the Dojo Centre at OYDC.
Foloko said the Dojo Centre is expected to be completed in February next year before the hosting of the Southern region IJF Academic workshop.
“IJF has picked a Romania contractor who is expected to begin works soon. The IJF president has given strict instructions that no material should be imported so that the country can benefit. We are hopeful that the centre will be completed by February,” he said.
The 10 days Olympic Solidarity Technical Workshop has attracted 25 judo coaches from all the 10 provinces.