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Allen Khumalo, Sports Reporter
ZIMBABWE’S Olympic swimming gold medalist and former world record holder Kirsty Leigh Coventry yesterday commissioned a swimming pool at Petra High School in Bulawayo.

She said the step taken by the school is a right one towards nurturing talent and the sport in the country.  Coventry praised the school board and the parents for the support rendered leading to  the construction of the  pool which she said will help in nurturing and exposing hidden talent.

“It’s great to see such initiatives being taken at this level because it’s where all the magic begins. It’s really encouraging to see that schools still want pools which are a good thing for the swimming community,” she said.

Speaking on the state of swimming in the country Coventry said:

“I was at the swimming nationals in Harare a few weeks ago and there were a lot of youngsters coming through and it was really exciting. In Harare I have been focusing more on youngsters and teaching them how to swim because that’s where we can have support for the clubs. Hopefully, we will get more people swimming nicely with correct strokes so that local clubs will have a bigger pool to draw swimmers from.”

Petra High School headmistress Heather Wells believes the pool will not only help the school in their competitions but also in unearthing hidden talent for national use.

“We have been working closely with parents towards the construction of this pool and we thank them for their input as well as our sponsors. I strongly believe this pool will help us in providing our local clubs with swimmers who are ready to represent the country. I would really like to thank the parents, the school board and our sponsors for the job well done. I hope they will continue supporting us in our future projects,” she said.

Matabeleland Swimming Board chairperson Nokuthula Cyprianos welcomed the opening of the  facility saying they are going to work closely with the school in order to produce future stars.

—  @khumzallen