Zimpapers Logo

Ellina Mhlanga Sports Reporter
ZIMBABWE’S upcoming judokas, Christi-Rose and Herculas Pretorius, had a fruitful outing over the weekend when they picked three medals at the Tunis Cadet and Junior African Cup in Tunisia.

It was a family affair for Christi-Rose and her young brother Herculas when she came out tops in both the cadets and juniors competition.

Herculas got silver in the cadets -81kg on Saturday.

Christi-Rose first competed in the cadets on Saturday where she walked away with a gold medal in the +70 kg weight division before claiming her the second one on Sunday in the juniors -78kg to cap off a memorable weekend.

The two judokas, based in the UK, were using the competition to prepare for the 2019 World Judo Championships Cadets that will see athletes under the age of 17 converging in Kazakhstan from September 25 to 28.

Christi-Rose represented the country at the African Games in Morocco last month.

The 16-year-old and her brother have been roped into Judo Association of Zimbabwe’s plans as they plan for the future.

JAZ president, Smart Deke, hailed the two for their good show over.

“This means a lot to these athletes and JAZ. We have got the junior long-term strategic plan because we are preparing these athletes towards the World Championships in 2024 and also the 2024 Olympic Games.

“So, this is actually very good preparations in terms of looking (also) at the next Africa Championships,” Deke said.

Deke said they were grateful to Christi-Rose and Herculas’ parents for their continued support.

The parents have been funding the two judokas’ participation in various events they have been attending while the national association facilitate their participation.

The two are going to be the country’s only representatives at the World Judo Championships Cadets as the JAZ battle financial constraints.