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Rashiwe Murisa Sports Reporter
IN  what could be a first for a school in the high-density suburbs, Glen View 1 High School have constructed a $3million state-of-the-art multi-purpose court to upgrade the sports facilities at the institution. The outdoor court, which ranks as one of its kind in the so-called Group B schools, accommodates different sporting disciplines such as basketball, tennis, netball, volleyball and korfball.

Sports director at the school, Tabeth Muchena, said the facility was part of their 100-day projects initiated by the Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education.  “The court has not been used yet and we are excited about it. This is going to lure more students into sports, the constructors recently finished the final touches,” Muchena said. The school has been successful in its sporting endeavours with its basketball and girls soccer teams being the shining beacons.

Glen View 1 High School’s Under-14 boys basketball team came second in the Harare District competition last year while the girls football team reached the semi-finals of the 2017 NASH National Championships.

Not to be outdone was the school’s korfball team which qualified for the National Korfball Championships which, however, did not take place due to the cholera outbreak late last year.

Muchena said the multi-sport court will promote sports like korfball which is not so popular with Group B schools in the country.

The school has a large pool of sporting disciplines such as golf, cricket, softball, baseball, table tennis, chess, football, boxing and darts.

The court was fully funded by the school’s development committee with hopes to encourage students to get not only into mainstream sports but into smaller sports such as korfball.

“As a school we value sports equally with education because we understand that not all students are gifted academically but some will earn a living from sports as what has happened with Zimbabwean sporting icons such as cricketer Tatenda Taibu, legendary footballer Peter Ndlovu and boxer Charles Manyuchi, among others,” Muchena said.

Glen View 1 High School intends to introduce more sporting disciplines such as hockey, badminton and beach volleyball by year-end.

The school’s headmaster, Alouis Maronga, said the school is determined to get the best sporting facilities for its students.

“We prioritise all sports even the minority ones because we understand that not all students are talented in the mainline sports such as soccer and netball,” Maronga said.