Over the years, Uganda has emerged the winner in different sporting disciplines, both internationally and locally.
We have time and again witnessed the Ugandan flag being hoisted in different parts of the world, especially when the Ugandan sportsmen and women register a landslide win in sporting disciplines such as football, athletics, netball, and cricket, among others.
However, the question is: what does it mean to Uganda, a country investing in sports for commercialization?
John Carlin, a British journalist, once said, “Sports has the power to change the world. It has the power to inspire and unite people. It’s more powerful for governments in breaking down racial barriers.”
Sports, as Carlin argues, can be an avenue for young people to remain focused and engaged in different productive affairs and boost their self-esteem to reduce their vulnerability to harmful social influences.
Uganda glittered and attracted world attention when the Uganda Olympics team won medals in different athletics categories where Joshua Cheptegei, the current 5000 world record holder and the then 10000 meters world record holder, bagged a gold medal in the men’s 5000m and a silver medal in the men’s 10000m.
Peruth Chemutai won a gold medal in the women’s 3000-meter steeplechase, and Jacob Kiplimo won a bronze medal in the Men’s 10000 meters. Those medals and subsequent ones are precious to the country and paint a beautiful image for Uganda in and out of Africa.
The recent victories of James Kiplimo and Cheptegei’s maintained Uganda’s supremacy in the New York City half marathon by securing their titles on Sunday.
The duo became UGX 73,892,680 and UGX 18,000,000 richer, respectively, after the win. All this money and other earnings are injected into the Ugandan economy, which increases economic welfare.
The minister of education and sports and First Lady Kataha Janet Museveni argued that sports is a multibillion-dollar business all over the world that not only provides commercial investment opportunities but also a way for many people to make a living. They also said that athletes shouldn’t just be judged by how many medals they win at international competitions, but rather the impact it has on them.
It’s on this basis that the Ugandan Government allocated 47.81 billion shillings in the 2022/23 financial year to fund sports activities that include supporting national teams’ international events, among others.
