According to the Head of State, it is necessary to create sports spaces and courts, with the contribution of civil society organizations and the business class, within the scope of social responsibility.
The President spoke at the ceremony honoring world champions Rui Andrade (motorsport), and in ju-jitsu, Eliane Eaio and Osleny Thomas, as well as the world runners-up in the same sport, Enelton Bombo, Ricardo Chimenes, Rui baltazar, Eric Rodrigo, Helder Kededy Manuel.
The Statesman also mentioned that it is imperative to rethink and reorganize school and university sports, with the organization of competitions at municipal, provincial and national levels, to make them a breeding ground for federated sport.
He also considered it important to pay greater attention to federated sport and the need to make it self-sustaining.
President João Lourenço ensured the continued construction of sports infrastructures, such as stadiums and multipurpose pavilions for the practice of different sports in the same space.
He recalled that construction work is underway on the Huambo and Uíge stadiums, as well as the training center for Paralympic sports practitioners in different disciplines, with accommodation and all the necessary equipment, in the city of Caxito, Bengo, with a possible date of delivery next year, which will be named after champion José Saiovo.
With the victory of world champion Rui Andrade, in motor sport, he said, it is felt that the country lacks motorcycle racing tracks and a real race track, of international standards, so that young Angolans stop watching races only on television and interested in the sport.
According to João Lourenço, it is not enough to build sports infrastructures without finding the right model for their management, maintenance and profitability, under penalty of continuing to witness their degradation due to little and misuse, many of which have been used for less than 10 years. the construction.
“Angola and Angolans feel very proud to have champions and good children, because your achievements are a valuable contribution to the struggle carried out by Angolan society for the education of youth, in the formation of personality, for the defense of the values of ethics, civics and patriotism.
The statesman recalled that just like before independence, a period in which citizens like Barceló de Carvalho “Bonga” and Rui Mingas stood out in high-performance sports, many young people have known how to dignify Angola’s good name, achieving important victories in African championships, and in some cases, for more than 10 consecutive years.
For her part, the Minister of Youth and Sports, Palmira Barbosa, says she is proud of the Executive’s commitment to sports, for contributing to the socioeconomic development of families, combating bad practices and improving the population’s quality of life, in general, and for becoming one of the vehicles for promoting the country’s image, across borders.
He promises to continue working with the federations to improve general performances in the different modalities and improve the country’s racking.
Osleny Thomas, 21 years old, two-time Paralympic Ju-jitsu world champion in the 2022/2023 seasons, feels honored by the honor.
He considered the tribute generous, condemning the discriminatory prejudice against people with physical disabilities. The champion called for greater attention from the Executive in training young people to better contribute to national development.
Eliane Caio, 16 years old, also Brazilian Ju-jitsu champion in 2022 and 2023, calls on young people to persist and never give up in the face of challenges.
Ricardo Ximenes, runner-up in the Ju-jitsu world champion for the third time in a row, proposes to expand the sport even more among children and young people.
18-year-old Eric Rodrigo, a Ju-jitsu practitioner, in the blue-77 kg category, and African and world champion, considered it gratifying to bring the flag to the country. He urged young people to always believe in their dreams.
Rui Andrade, on the other hand, considered it important to be the first African to win a world endurance championship, in the LMP2 class, representing Angola with dignity.
They witnessed the ceremony that took place in the gardens of Cidade Alta, the ceremony witnessed by government officials, politicians, members of civil society, sportspeople, sports federations, the technical teams of the national teams, among others.JSF/SC