Lalam bids farewell to FEASSSA Games

Team Uganda will start a new era without leading javelin thrower Josephine Lalam at the FEASSSA Games this year.

The five-time FEASSSA Games and reigning Commonwealth Youth and Africa U-20 Athletics Championship javelin champion completed her high school last year at Gombe SS.

Lalam was therefore not at this year's USSSA Ball Games II in Soroti, but according to James Mawa, the Team Uganda athletics manager, the assembled 51 girls and boys, are good enough to do even better than their predecessors.

"We have had good athletes come and go and we have kept doing well. I am sure the team we have this year is capable of doing better than last year," Mawa says.

Heading to Arusha

From the Soroti games hosted at Teso College Aloet a couple of weeks ago, USSSA has named 28 boys and 23 girls who are expected to enter residential camp later this week, in preparation for the FEASSSA games scheduled for August 15-24 in Arusha, Tanzania, with Butambala and Wakiso dominating the team of selected athletes.

In the absence of javelin gold winners Lalam and Moses Achieng, Mawa has faith in newfound Jackline Biwaru and Susan Lapolo for the girls and Patrick Awanyi for the boys, while Anthony Tukamuhebwa will lead the hunt for retaining the discus gold.

Uganda has for four years beaten rivals Kenya in the athletics female category but kept relegated to second position behind Kenya in the overall rankings at the games.

The sports gala draws athletes from the six FEASSSA member states of South Sudan, Kenya, Tanzania, Rwanda, Uganda and Burundi, competing in 13 other sports disciplines.