Zambeef celebrates team spirit of sport
Zambeef Joint Chief Executive Officers Dr Carl Irwin and Frances Grogan with FAZ Secretary General Ponga Liwewe at the Zambeef Kaleza football tournament
The private sector is playing its part in taking sports to the next level at both grassroots and professional levels, says Zambeef Joint Chief Executive Officer Dr Carl Irwin.
“Team sports are a fantastic lesson for life. It teaches people to work as a team and get the best out of each other. It teaches discipline and the importance of hard work and dedication in improving the performance of the group. These are important lessons in business and life. In addition to showing humility in victory and gracious in defeat are all lessons for life,” he said during Zambeef’s Kaleza football tournament on Saturday (April 1).
Dr Irwin was speaking during the preliminary rounds of Zambeef’s Kaleza football tournament at the Bank of Zambia Recreation Centre on Saturday (April 1). Winners, the LAZ team, go forward to play a ‘dream team’ that includes three of the 2012 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) champions at Zambeef’s Zamfest football and food extravaganza in the Lusaka Showgrounds on Saturday, April 8.
Former Chipolopolo team captain Christopher Katongo will lead Joseph Musonda and Felix Katongo, along with Buchiza Mfune and Joseph Chisanga in donning their boots at Zamfest for the friendly match against the heat winners.
For those who miss the action, the tournament will also be broadcast on DStv’s football magazine show Bola Ya Pa Zed with highlights from the preliminary on SuperSport 9 channel 209 Blitz the week after the event.
Speaking to DSTv’s football magazine show Bola Ya Pa Zed, Dr Irwin pointed out that Zambia has some of the best sporting talent on the continent, as evidenced by the many outstanding athletes in the various sporting, particularly football, with the Africa Cup of Nations 2012 and the more recent Under 20 Africa Cup of Nations victories.
The tournament will be one part of Zambeef’s massive Zamfest event at the Showgrounds, which will also see the launch of DVD sales of the e18hteam documentary that captures the passion, excitement and national pride of the Zambian football team as it charts the fortunes of the national Chipolopolo team – from the lows of the 1993 Gabon air crash to the highs of the 2012 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) victory.
Zambeef has a long association with football. Its Zamleather division makes the popular Kaleza Z-12 model leather soccer boots, the first to be locally designed and manufactured in Zambia. Zamleather is also home to the Alive & Kicking employment-generation project that manufacturers quality leather soccer balls that carry health messages and are distributed to under-privileged teams nationwide.
Throughout its history Zambeef has supported a number of football teams playing in leagues and at community level, and has groomed footballers at the grassroots including AFCON 2012 squad member James Chamanga.
The event will also incorporate a food festival and music from some of the country’s top artists, including Pompi, Willz, Cactus Agony, Maureen Lilanda, Crazy Fish, with DJs Psycho Tash and Sebastien Dutch and MCs K-Star and Kapembwa and DJ Roxy.
Zimbabwean legend Oliver Mtukudzi will headine, supported by Oskido from South Africa, Patience Namadingo from Malawi and Evicted from Zimbabwe.
Zambeef sponsored production of the e18hteam DVD, documentary, which is the work of producer Ngosa Chungu and Spanish writer, director and co-producer Juan Rodriguez-Briso. It follows themes of Zambian pride, spirit, sportsmanship and perseverance as the country went from losing 18 national players in a tragic plane crash (1993) to the hard-won victory in 2012.
The Zamfest, as the DVD launch event, also promises the most exciting chefs from across Africa, 50 world class pop-up restaurants, more than 100 international and local types of cuisine to sample, the best of local and international music acts, and a wide selection of local and exotic beverages. To add to the event will be a “knock-out round” football competition, made up of eight amateur teams. The winners receiving a cash prize and the opportunity to face-off against five of Zambia’s current football stars. Other event day competitions will include a Best Braai competition and an attempt at breaking a world record, yet to be disclosed.