THE Zifa Mashonaland East chairperson Oscar Tsvuura has applauded efforts being made by the Kanyongo family ahead of the annual KB Kanyongo Football tournament final scheduled for later this month in rural Mutoko.
Tsvuura will be the guest of honour at the ever-growing tournament which has since become a permanent feature on the football calendar and is held in honour of the late Kanyongo, father to the coordinator Gideon, who now resides in the United States.
Speaking ahead of the final set for October 22 in Mutoko, Tsvuura said what the Kanyongo family is doing is in line with the thrust of the football association to try and resurrect the most popular sport in the country.
“As Zifa we really appreciate the effort being put by the Kanyongo family in as far as the development of grassroots football is concerned,” Tsvuura told the Daily News.
“We want to applaud them for what they are doing. This is exactly in line with what the Zifa board wants to achieve is as far as the development of football is concerned. It’s one of the association’s priorities to resurrect the junior development in the country.
“We encourage what they are doing. As Zifa we want to work with all critical stakeholders to develop our game. We endorse such initiatives and we want to assure our support. We cannot think of a better future without junior development.
“What the Kanyongo are doing is a clear demonstration of what we can achieve if grassroots development is done properly. We therefore encourage the corporate to come on board. We need synergies between corporates and football administration.”
This year’s edition is the third and probably the biggest yet which saw eight teams taking part from the group stages.
Zisengwe FC will battle it out against Kanyongo at this year’s final after prevailing in the semifinals recently. Gideon has predicted an exciting final saying several prices are up for grabs.
“It’s really a good feeling to be hosting this tournament. I must say I’m humbled with the support we are getting from everyone,” he said.
“It was small when we started but the progress we have made since then is awesome. The numbers this year were great and I’m really grateful to Zifa for the support. We are looking forward to have more of this in the coming years. Our wish is to see this grow into a national event.”
The KB Kanyongo football tournament, which is sponsored by Kanyongo’s eight children, has been hailed for helping young kids in the community to stay away from drugs while helping them concentrate on school.
The Kanyongo family embarked on a programme three years ago in which they are helping to combat early marriage and to raise girls’ confidence, aspirations and school attendance through sport in rural Mutoko.
The programme mainly targets the vulnerable groups and is also extended to the young boys in the community as a way of keeping them away from drugs while help them concentrate on school.