Namibian Sport Medic Donatha Gawanas will attend the IOC World Conference on the Prevention of Injury and Illness in Sports in Monaco from April 7 to 9, after receiving sponsorships from the National Olympic Committe and Nampower to cover her costs.
Nampower sponsored Gawanas’ air ticket while the NNOC sponsored her accommodation and registration for the course.
According to the secretary general of the NNOC Abner Xoagub, it was important for Gawanas to attend the course so that she could gain more experience and share it with the Namibian nation.
“More than 90 specialists will present papers at the conference and a wealth of information will be shared. As Namibians we need to be part of the process, and for us this is a very important area, because when it comes to big competitions, our major challenge is always injuries. If the athletes are not well managed, it will come back to haunt you during the competition,” he said.
Xoagub said that Gawanas would have to plough her knowledge back to help raise the standard of sport medicine in Namibia.
“She will need to identify some of the main speeches and gather information that is important for Namibia. After her return we will see if we can organise a seminar and maybe invite some of the speakers so that they can plough their knowledge back in Namibia. We must start grooming a new generation of sport medics in Namibia,” he said.
The Deputy Minister of Youth, Sport, National Service, Sport and Culture Pohamba Shifeta said that Namibia only had one sport medic in Gawanas and that it was important to encourage the youth to take up the profession.
“We must encourage the youth to go for training, because the treatment of injuries is very important. I would like to thank Nampower for investing in this programme and for being a committed partner in the development of sport in Namibia and I call on other entities to take up the challenge and to encourage the youth to go for training,” he said.
Gawanas thanked Nampower saying that she was very grateful for their investment.
“When I got the call I was so excited, I started jumping up and down and didnt know if I should laugh or cry. This is very important to me because I want to expand my knowledge and dont want to be left behind with regard to sport injuries. Thanks so much for making this possible - I will definitely share my knowledge and help the other medics in Namibia on my return,” she said.
John Kaimu of Nampower said he was humbled by Gawanas’ gratitude.
“I am humbled by what you have said, because sometimes we invest a lot but the gratitude we get cannot be compared to what you have said. We have a sponsorship committee that sits once a month to decide which projects to sponsor, but generally I can say that we are taking serious steps to invest more in sport,” he said.