THEY may only be fielding 41 athletes, however the competitive spirit of the Anglican Church Basden College is the constant force of support for them in the Coca-Cola Games Suva Zone One athletics meet.
The school, based on Newtown in Nasinu, is one of the many schools out to make a mark at this year’s zone athletics meet.
According to team manager Manit Lal, it has been four weeks of preparation to get themselves ready for the competition with the support of many stakeholders.
“The training we have been doing for the past four weeks has been going well, the parental support is there, our head of school, the vice principal and AP (Assistant Principal) and the rest of the teachers support is also there,” Lal said.
In participating at the zone meet, the school does so with the aim of developing athletes for the next few years especially in the field events.
“We are here to develop our squad for the next few years. We are mostly looking into field events and for the sub-junior and junior grades,” he said.
Selecting students for the zone meet meant eyeing standout athletes in the school’s inter-house meet and Lal said the combined inter-house meet was a vital aspect of their preparations.
However with a school ground that may not be up to expectations, he says the school does what it can with the available resources.
“The main challenge for us is the ground, so we will stick to the plan and we will see if we can achieve it in the coming years.”
The zone meet ends today.
