ON March 13 2013, at the giant National Sports Stadium, Racheal Mukoki set a new primary school girls 100m record of 13,12 seconds.
By Own Correspondent
Exactly one year, three months down the lane, the girl has once again made headlines.
But that time last year, no one ever dreamt a track queen had been unearthed in one of the most remote areas of the country.
Born and bred in Chikombedzi, situated about 200km from Chiredzi, Mukoki has become one of the most promising sporting talents to be discovered in this country.
A closer look of Chikombedzi, this forgotten area where the promising star hails from, shows that there is a lot more untapped talent waiting to be exposed.
To the east, the area borders Mozambique and South Africa to the west. Lack of publicity of the area is mainly due to an unavailability of communication tools, radio and television. There is no reception at all for radio and TV in this area.
Villagers of Chikombedzi rely on South African or Mozambique radio stations.
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But, in spite of all these setbacks, a promising track queen has been born.
The Grade Six pupil at Gurungweni Primary School set a new record for primary schools girls in the 100m race at the National Sports Stadium in March 2013, having run a record 13,12 seconds during the National Association of Primary School Heads finals of the Healthy Kids Athletics and Physical Education competition, earning herself a gold medal. She proceeded to bag one more gold in the 200m race.
Mukoki has proved to be a fearless athlete, daring even male counterparts to the track.
Mukoki was last week availed to the Minister of Information Communication Technology and Courier Services Webster Shamu at the school.
The minister expressed surprise over such talent hidden in this deep remote area.
The young sprinter stunned all and sundry when her coach and trainer, a teacher at the school Jephter Madzore, opened a bag full of the athlete’s medals.
The pupil has so far amassed 10 medals, five gold and five silver medals in her short sporting period spanning just two years. Mukoki, who is 12 years old, competes in the 100 and 200m sprints and she has never lost in any of these races so far. She has been impressive, competing from the zonal to national level with her last performance being in Kariba in March last year where she scooped one gold in the 100m and a silver in the 200m race.
Her coach said the wonder child could have scooped two gold medals had it not been that she was injured during the first race when she fell and sustained a knee injury at the finishing line.
Mukoki had to go into the next 200m sprint limping but she however finished second and got a silver medal. The injury saw her missing a national athletics event that was held in Marondera in May.
The timid and shy athlete said in an interview that her talent in athletics was an in-born thing that started when she was in Grade Four.
Mukoki was born from a poor family and lost her father when she was a toddler. Her mother works the fields and does other odd jobs to fend for her and her four siblings.
Her exceptional performances on the track field have driven her teachers to help her by paying her school fees.
Touched by the plight of the kid, Shamu, through his ministry extended a full educational cover package as they pledged school fees payment from next term until Advanced Level.
Other politicians who accompanied the minister chipped in with cash donations with Chiredzi East Member of Parliament Denford Masiya also chipping in with a huge donation.
