Eight teams will battle it out for M350,000 in total prize money when the Nedbank 8 roars into life this weekend at Bambatha Tšita Sports Arena.

The money is an M100,000 increase on last year’s sponsorship and the benefactors are the top eight teams from the just concluded A-Division league campaign – Mzamane, Kick4Life, Lilemela and Maroala from the north stream and Majantja, Swallows, Members and Qoaling Highlanders from the South.

The Nedbank 8 will start at the quarterfinal stage on Saturday and Sunday where teams from the same stream have been kept apart in the draw, and the knockout competition will climax next weekend with the semi-finals and final.

Nedbank 8 Weekend Fixtures:
Saturday
Maroala vs. Qoaling Highlanders (13:00)
Kick4Life Juventude vs. Swallows (15:00)
Sunday
Mzamane vs. Members FC (13:00)
Lilemela vs. Majantja (15:00)

Speaking at Tuesday’s tournament launch, Nedbank marketing manager Sekonyela Matamane said discussions are ongoing to finalise prize monies for teams and players, but the winning club is expected to walk away with more than the M25,000 that last year’s champions pocketed.

“We have a history that we like, we celebrate it and we protect it,” Matamane said.

“Last year we supported the competition with 250 000, this year when we write (the history of the Nedbank 8), that two (hundred thousand) will be three (hundred thousand). By saying that, it means we have added M100 000 to improve the tournament,” he added.

The financial increase is music to the ears of the teams because the Nedbank 8 gifts them a much-needed financial windfall.

Not only does the money collected help the two teams that have won promotion to the Vodacom Premier League, which are Mzamane and Majantja this year, it goes a long way for the six other sides returning to the A-Division next season.

A-Division Management Committee (ADMACO) chairman Tšeliso Ramatla said that is what makes the Nedbank 8 important to the clubs, because it is a chance for them to make some money to help with team expenses.

“Take this opportunity, show a high level (of performance) because it is not easy to have competitions in the league,” Ramatla said to the eight teams.

“In the elite league (Vodacom Premier League) there is only one competition they play, then we wait for this one. The teams’ management know how difficult it is, they know their expenses for the whole season,” he continued.

Ramatla also urged the teams to understand and follow tournament rules.

He said the 2023/24 has been a difficult one for ADMACO because they had many cases that were caused by teams not being able to interpret laws properly.

Ramatla, who is an executive member of Vodacom Premier League champions Bantu, said he hopes there are repeats in the Nedbank 8.

“This season there were many challenges, teams interpret the law how they want and because they do that we had many cases,” Ramatla said. “Teams do not want to read the laws. I know because I run a team, I am in Bantu’s management.”

“I know you don’t read the laws and when things don’t according to your thinking it brings us cases,” Ramatla continued. “I trust we are done with that and we are getting into this tournament with no complaints.”

Tlalane Phahla

Home favourite Khothalang Leuta booked her spot at the 2024 UCI Pump Track World Championships later in the year after racing to glory at last Saturday’s global qualifiers at the Sepheo pump-track in Motimposo.

The Sepheo qualifier was part of a series of 15 events that will be hosted around the world by the International Cycling Union (UCI) until September and will culminate in a World Championship final featuring the planet’s best pump track racers.

Qualifier dates:
20 April – Genk, Belgium
27 April – Sepheo, Lesotho
4 May – Aigle, Switzerland
26 May – Ainsa, Spain
8 June – Sugarland, Texas, USA
15 June – Košice, Slovakia
14 July – Oktrovice, Czechia
27 July – Yantai, China
10 August – Hvidovre (Copenhagen) Denmark
24 August – Dungog, Australia
31 August – Havelock North, New Zealand
7 September – Sicamous (BC), Canada
14 September – Monthey, Switzerland
16 September – Suizhou, China
21 September – Erlangen, Germany

Leuta was sensational as she sealed her spot with a time of 19:59 minutes in the women’s race to pip countrywomen Katleho Ralenono (19:62), ‘Mampoka Popane (23:42) and Kabelo Mpharoane (31:51) to a place at the world finals.

Leuta’s performance means she will return for her second appearance after she competed at the championships in 2021 in Lisbon, Portugal and she will enjoy an all-expenses paid trip from UCI sponsors Velosolutions to represent Lesotho against the best riders in pump track around the globe.

The host of this year’s UCI Pump Track World Championships is yet to be announced but Leuta is already looking forward to her trip.

Speaking to thepost after her win, Leuta said she is delighted to return to the World Championships and she will be more prepared than last time.

“I did not do well in 2021 but this year I’m willing to do better, I want be a champion or at least be in the top four,” she said

She pleaded with companies for sponsorship because cycling is an expensive sport with seemingly endless list of equipment to acquire.

Without help, “It can take a toll on our families,” she said.

Despite the challenges, Leuta has become the country’s elite woman in the discipline of pump track racing, which continues to go from strength to strength globally.

The bike sport, which sees riders compete through obstacles on a tight asphalt track, is now in the sixth year of organised competition spearheaded by the UCI Pump Track World Championships which were first held in 2018.

Lesotho didn’t have the same joy in the men’s qualifying race as Chile’s Sebastian Mendez took first place in a time of 17:09 minutes to qualify for the world finals.

Mendez was followed by Doran Mathewson from South Africa who clocked 17:71 while two local riders, Pusetso Lekau and Khotso Mosala, suffered heartbreak despite completing their laps in fast times of 18:06 and 18:11 respectively.

Unless, Lekau, Mosala and Kopano Makhetha, who also had hopes of qualifying, can find a way to make it to another of the global qualifiers, their dreams of competing at the world finals have been dashed for this year.

One of the organisers of the Sepheo qualifier, Tumelo Makhetha, said the event was special because it attracted riders from outside the continent. Makhetha said in the previous years the Lesotho qualifier has had only riders from South Africa and to have some competitors come from as far as South America is a big achievement.

Makhetha sang Leuta’s praises as well. “The competition was high this year and we are looking forward to seeing how she will do in the World Championships,” he said.

Relebohile Tšepe

The final six spots in Lesotho’s team for the Chess Olympiad Games in Hungary later this year will be decided this weekend.
The Chess Federation of Lesotho (CFL) is hosting a weeklong tournament at Lancers Inn and the finals are set for Sunday where six players that come out on top will book the remaining qualifying tickets.
The CFL are sending 10 players to Budapest, Hungary where approximately 190 countries are expected to compete.

The 45th Chess Olympiad, organised by the International Chess Federation, will take place from September 10 to 23 and four players have already sealed their places.

Two players, Lieketseng Ngatane and Lihloela Motlomelo, qualified in March after beating 18 other hopefuls while Sechaba Khalema and Boitumelo Sethabathaba secured their spots last year.

CFL spokesperson Selatela Khiba said the competition at Lancers Inn to join them is intense because everyone realises what is at stake.

“They are all fighting to go to Budapest to represent the country,” he said.

Khiba added that this year’s trip to Hungary is special because the four players that have qualified will be competing at the Chess Olympiad Games for the first time and there is a high probability more new faces will come from this week’s play.

“Sending new faces shows that there is high competition in the country,” Khiba said.

“Every player wants international exposure and the experience, and that shows big improvement in the country.”

Khiba said the CFL also hopes the new faces will help Lesotho perform better in Hungary than it did at the 44th Chess Olympiad Games held last year in Chennai, India.

“Although we did not do well in India last year, this year we have bigger hopes because the selection of players was done early and players will have enough time to prepare,” he said.

Khiba added that the CFL are even planning to recruit an international coach to boost the players’ preparations by equipping them with new skills and techniques that will help them win.

“We will do whatever it takes to help us come back with good results this year,” he said.

Meanwhile, St Stephens High School from Mohale’s Hoek and Mokhotlong’s Seeiso High School have been crowned the 2024 National High Schools Chess champions in the Open and Girls sections respectively.

Over 330 students from six districts gathered at Leqele High School last weekend to compete for the right to be called the best chess high schools in the country.

In the Open section, Seeiso High School took home gold, Sofia International School from Butha-Buthe grabbed silver and Lesia High School had to settle for bronze.

In the Girls section, St Stephens ran out winners while Lesia finished second and Masowe took home the bronze medal.

Relebohile Tšepe