By MOSES CHIMFWEMBE –

MUFULIRA will this weekend be a hive of basketball activities as Copperbelt youths are set to converge on the Chawama basketball courts to compete in the grand 2015 Independence Basketball championship.
The tournament will mark the commemoration of Zambia’s 51st Independence anniversary that falls this Saturday.
With the rest of the province marking the celebration with various sports activities in Ndola, the Copperbelt Youth Basketball League (CYBL) organising committee deemed it fit to stage the championship in Mufulira to coincide with the Sports Council of Zambia (SCZ)’s initiative of hosting Independence tournaments across the country.
However, the tournament is deliberately biased to the Under-15s as it will also be used as a tool for developing the sport on the grassroots.
The youngsters are geared to celebrate the country’s peace and unity that spans over 50 years in style.
More than 12 teams from Ndola, Chingola, Kitwe, Chililabombwe, Luanshya and Mufulira are expected to compete in the tournament that will be hosted at Chawama and Tangup Barracks courts.
“We hope to start the games around 09:30hours with the boys’ stage games at each venue while the final and closing ceremony will be later held at the Chawama basketball court annexed to Shinde Stadium.
“Unlike last year, this time around, we have also invited at least three girls’ teams to participate though not strictly for the Under-15 in their case,” organising committee member Ignatius Chongwe said.
He said the tournament will provide an opportunity for the youngsters to develop and sharpen their skills.
Developing mass-popularity team sports such as basketball requires a comprehensive pyramid system, consisting of a wide base of school sports, a solid multilevel league system, and elite national programmes on top of that.
The Copperbelt Youth Basketball League is a solid system to cultivate talent and the region’s prosperity which will hinge on the success of the youth level.