More than 200 athletes have registered to take part in the first leg of the Bank Windhoek Grand Prix Series scheduled to take place at the Oshakati Stadium on Saturday, December 8.

According to Athletics Namibia, this shows a 25 percent increase in participation of the same leg held in the 2011/2012 season.

In addition, the competition marks the start of the Track and Field season for athletics and will have a total of just over N$45 000 in prize money.

The Oshakati leg of the Bank Windhoek Grand Prix is the first of three legs which will have Namibia’s athletes vying for top honours in the lucrative competition.

Seasoned Namibian athletes like Sportswoman of the year Helalia Johannes, Beata Naigambo, and Reinhold Iita will be using the competition to kick start their training programme ahead of competitions on the national and international circuit.

2012 Namibian Most Improved Sportsperson of the year, Globine Mayova also booked her participation in the 200m and 400m while 2012 Athletics Namibia national champions Daniel Nghipandulwa and Hitjivirue Kaanjuka booked their spots in the 800m and 100m events respectively.

Athletics Namibia has extended an invitation to all athletics enthusiasts to support the athletes at the Oshakati Stadium from 09:00 to 14:00 on Saturday, December 8, 2012.

The second leg of the Bank Windhoek Grand Prix will take place in Windhoek on the January 12, 2013, while the final leg takes place on February 2, 2013 in Swakopmund.

(The story was first published in Namibia Sport on on Thu, 12/06/2012)