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Joseph Rego

Senior Sports Reporter

THE Heath Streak Multi-Sport Academy has diversified its operations, partnering leading cricket equipment manufacturer Sareen Sport of India to set up a sports shop within their Fourth Avenue extension McDonald Club premises.

The ambitious Heath Streak Multi-Sport Academy has stocked Sareen Sport equipment which will be going on sale before the end of the month.

Speaking at their offices yesterday, Joseph Rego, the academy’s chief executive officer and executive director, said the cricket equipment was the beginning of a range of products that they will offer at their shop.

He said:“Sareen Sport is a brand of cricket equipment and manufactures goods used by top-class cricketers all over the world. The likes of Sachin Tendulkar, Kumar Sangakara and our very own Hamilton Masakadza are brand ambassadors of Sareen Sport. We hope that by bringing top quality equipment this will inspire up-and-coming cricketers to dream big by using what the best in the sport use.

“The sports shop will soon extend to other disciplines that we offer here at the academy,” said Rego.

Besides cricket, the Heath Streak Multi-Sport Academy also offers rugby, football and swimming coaching. Plans are at an advanced stage to engage an expert who will conduct athletics sessions.

The Heath Streak Multi-Sport Academy boss said the dream to bring to Zimbabwe top quality cricket equipment was made possible through the benevolent contribution of the academy’s major shareholder and financial backer Raj Modi.

Rego said some of the equipment will be donated to underprivileged schools and they are working on getting corporate partners who will adopt the schools.

“What we want is for every child in Bulawayo to play the sport and that is why we are making it our duty to get companies that will adopt their schools so that they have free cricket lessons at our high-performance facility as well as get cricket equipment. Our target is to help about 150 schools in the region by the end of the year and we believe that is achievable,” said Rego.

The Heath Streak Multi-Sport Academy has undergone a major facelift to meet the celebrated former national team captain’s vision and dream of establishing a world class multi-sports facility in Bulawayo that identifies and nurtures talent.

Upon completion, the facility which is modelled along the lines of South Africa’s High Performance Centre in Pretoria and already has a gym, two cricket grounds and a swimming pool, will have an indoor sports centre that will be used for hockey and five-a-side soccer.