Indians in Uganda promise to reward CWG meddalists

KAMPALA - The Indian community in Uganda has promised to reward Ugandan athletes who win medals at the 2010 Commonwealth Games in Delhi.

“We shall give cash rewards to the best performers because they need to be motivated,” said Sanjiv Patel, a member of the Indian community, during the team’s send-off Wednesday night.

The Indian community has helped raise about $93,000 to facilitate the Ugandan team’s preparation for the Games, scheduled to begin in the Indian capital Oct 3.

“The Games will be held in our country (India) for the first time and we thought as Indians based in Uganda, we must help the Ugandan team,” Patel was quoted as saying by Xinhua.

Uganda’s Education and Sports Minister Namirembe Bitamazire wished the team members well and prayed that they win “as many medals as possible”.

The Ugandan team consists of 65 athletes and 18 officials. They would take part in badminton, rugby, squash, tennis, table tennis, swimming and athletics.