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Despite Australia’s dominance, Uganda have improved their medal tally at a single edition of the Commonwealth games
This year’s games were played in Birmingham, England and Uganda collected five medals most of which were brought home by the Athletes.
Victor Kiplangat in the marathon, Jacob Kiplimo who won two medals (10,000m, 5000m) and Peruth Chemutai who collected the bronze in the 3000m steeplechase.
The other medal was collected by the first female Commonwealth games boxer from the Pearl of Africa Teddy Nakimuli, who achieved a bronze.
Uganda was well represented in numerous sports disciplines like Rugby, Netball, Swimming, Table Tennis, Cycling, wrestling, Badminton, Weight lifting and Squash.
The Rugby Sevens series opened up the stage for team Uganda, a day after the opening ceremony as the Rugby Cranes Sevens team lost their first game to Kenya. They won against Jamaica 40-0 in their second game only to draw against World beaters Australia in their third game.
Something that led the team to finishing third in the group. This meant that the motivated Cranes team after drawing against Australia weren’t heading to the next stage but just heading to the reparcharge where they faced Tongo and won 27-07 hence finishing 10th.
In the Athletics side, Victor Kiplangat surprised the masses as he won Uganda’s first Commonwealth games gold medal in the Marathon.
Victor Kiplangat after winning the Marathon race.
Kiplangat, 22 recorded a fastest time of 2:10:55 to beat Tanzania’s Alfred Simba (2:12:29), who won silver and Kenya’s Michael Githae, (2:13:16) who came in third to win the bronze.
The next one was won by 2022 World Athletics bronze medalist in the 10,000m Jacob Kiplimo who came forward to break Joshua Cheptegei’s time record at the same games in 2018.
Kiplimo ran a fastest time of 27.09:19 to win the 10,000m race and break Joshua Cheptegei’s record of 27:19.62 he set in 2018 Gold Coast.
Kiplimo after finishing the 5000m at the Alexandria Stadium.9
After a few days, the youngster came back in the 5000m to clinch a second gold in the 2022 Commonwealth games after running toe to toe against Kenya’s Nicholas Kimeli and Jacob Krop and later rocketing at the final stretch.
Kiplimo 21, therefore become the third Ugandan to win this race at the games after Moses Kipsiro and Joshua Cheptegei.
The other runner who impressed was Peruth Chemutai who won bronze in the 3000m Steeple chase race.
Peruth Chemutai jumping a handle in the 3000m steeple chase race.
During her run while in second, Chemutai fell over a barrier in the race leading to her failure to collect her first Commonwealth gold title for Uganda but was persistent enough to run for 9:23.24 with a knee injury just to finish third.
In the end, this made it four medals from the athletics world but with also some other good performances from Winnie Nanyondo, Jasent Nyamahungwe, Halimah Nakaayi, Shedi Leni, Harod.
In Netball, the She Cranes put up a good show at the games improving their world ranking from sixth to fifth.
She Cranes finished third in the group losing to New Zealand in the first game, winning the second against Trinidad & Tobago then lost to the hosts England.
However much they won against Northern Ireland and Malawi in the other group games, that did not fuel their chances to go to the semi-finals but won in the repercharge against South Africa to conquer Africa hence becoming Africa’s number one.
For Boxing, the Uganda bombers were in good position after four of the five players went past the round of 32.
But to cut the long story short, the youngest boxer at the games Isaac Zebra Ssenyange Jr. did not go past the round of 16, just like team Captain Joshua Tukamuhebwa who did not understand how he failed to win against the Canadian.
For Owen Kibira he was no expectional as he fell to the Zambia’s Stephen Zimba while Teddy Nakimuli, the first female boxer to represent Uganda at the commonwealth games in history also became the first female to win a commonwealth games medal which was a bronze.
On the side of table tennis, Parvin Nangonzi and Jemimah Nakawala caught the eye of all the fans, participants and officials because of representing their country quite at a tender age.
For swimming Uganda may not have had any single medal but surely it was an outstanding outing in Birmingham with the 27 year old, Avice Meya lifting Team Uganda with her pleasant performance in the Women’s 50m freestyle.
The team will proceed to Konya, Turkey for the 2021 Islamic Solidarity Games joining Hushnah Kukundakwe who already won herself a gold medal at the Championship in the Para side
The regular games will be the scheduled from 9th to 18 August 2022.
For Badminton, they didn’t make it out of the group. The team was in group C with Canada, Scotland and Maldives, finishing third after only one win and two losses against Canada and Scotland only for the two to advance.
In the mixed doubles, Wanagaliya Daniel / Kobugabe Husina stopped at the round of 32 while Kobugabe Husina / Mohamed Rafi Fadilah Shamika in the women’s doubles stopped at the quarterfinal stage after losing to England’s Engbirch Chloe / Smith Lauren David
With Squash, Paul Kadoma lost at the first round of 64 against Khalil but still finished at the quaterfinals. On the other side Kawooya went straight to the round of 32 after a win against Wales‘ Makin where he stopped having lost to Adela of Schylles.
In the men’s doubles, Paul Kadooma / Micheal Kawooya ended their journey at the quarterfinal when they lost 2-0 to Simpson Shawn / Cumberbatch Khamal
In the rest of the games just like Table tennis, we didn’t win a game in Weightlifting where we didn’t participate, Wrestling where Veronica Ayo and Jacob Ntuyo all lost their match ups not forgetting Cycling whose individuals weren’t seen but the event was.
With the 2018 performance in Gold Coast, this was surely an improvement with a number of debutants across all sports disciplines.
Most of these sports have a honey moon treat like event with the Rugby Cranes heading down to Chile, with the other teams flying to Konya, Turkey for The 2021 Islamic Solidarity Games.
Uganda will compete in games like Athletics, Archery, Basketball 3×3, cycling, swimming, Table Tennis as Netball’s She Cranes await the Vitality international series to be hosted by England in October.
