Muddy track affects athletics at Eastern Africa University Games

Ndejje, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | All athletics events at the ongoing Eastern Africa University Games have been postponed to tomorrow due to the muddy running track at the Arena of visions stadium in Ndejje.

Boniface Salano, the Vice President-Technical, of the Federation of East Africa University Games said that a technical meeting with officials from the Uganda Athletics Federation resolved to postpone the events which had been planned for today,  after a heavy downpour that left the ground soggy and unsuitable for the sport.

This track will just injure athletes, nothing can be done here,” an official from the Uganda Athletics Federation who didn’t want to appear in this report said, shortly before they all decided that it won’t be possible to have the events as planned.

The track events which were planned for two days will now start tomorrow and end on Wednesday. Salano added that they will now opt to use Bombo Military Barracks grounds where the running track is made of grass.

Joshua Jagalo, one of the athletes, who was warming up for the competition for Makerere University told URN that the cancellation is a blessing in disguise because he needed an extra day to get in shape.
Meanwhile, the interference in the athletics event comes as one of the immediate challenges that hosts Ndejje are facing after speedy preparations for the games that saw them fail to parade an athletics tartan on time. URN has learnt that the athletics tartan that was procured by the university was delayed in Mombasa because of taxation issues.

Florence Nakamya, the head of the organizing secretariat says that the tartan will not be ready for the games. The 12th edition of the Eastern Africa University Games kicked off on Friday, December 16, with the opening ceremony at Ndejje University.

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URN