Bowling them out!

Sport
Innocent Dongo is a 20-year-old graphic designer who cares for his young siblings, holds down a demanding job , yet still finds time to play lengthy games of lawn bowls.

Meet Innocent Dongo, a 20-year-old graphic designer who cares for his young siblings in the Budiriro high-density suburb, holds down a demanding, creative job which he’s still learning, yet still finds time to play lengthy games of lawn bowls and put in demanding practice sessions each week.

BY Dusty Miller

Innocent took up lawn bowls — long thought to be the exclusive domain of middle class, middle-aged to elderly white people — while still at Prince Edward School a couple of years ago.

He’d previously represented PE at cricket and swimming but soon found the accuracy-demanding sport of bowls, with long hours spent in the hot sun, more appealing and he made it his sporting major event while still studying for his A-levels.

Innocent and several young contemporaries from PE joined the 83-year-old City Bowling Club in Harare Gardens, where he was taken under the wing of established senior bowlers and he has never looked back. He has represented CBC at club, provincial, national and Masters’ level travelling throughout the country, bowling.

He says he is undecided as to which was his most pleasing achievement; representing CBC and Mashonaland East at the masters’ tournament in Bulawayo last August or coming third in the recent Mashonaland East Singles Tournament when, during the knock-out stages he eliminated one of his original bowling mentors, veteran player Ian Trombas.

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