E1.4M WPA HEYBALL PARASPORT WORLD CHAMPS: ESWATINI DUO BOWS OUT WITH PRIDE

MBABANE – After an encouraging start, Eswatini has exited the WPA Heyball Parasport World Championship.

This World Pool-Billiard Association (WPA) prestigious tournament, which runs in the period December 14-21, is currently taking place at the Los Angeles Convention Centre, in the USA. The championship features a substantial prize purse of E1.4 million and is specifically designed for athletes living with disabilities. Eswatini was represented by Mandlenkosi Mabaso (42) and Sinenkosi Maseko (14), who were accompanied by Muntu Dlamini, the President of the Eswatini Cue Sports Association (ECSA).

Mabaso initially showcased remarkable promise in a competitive field of 164 players, advancing to the last 82 after defeating the USA’s Yolando Carolino with a score of 6-4. However, his journey came to an end against India’s Venkateswaran Subramanian, where he suffered a defeat of 1-7. Nonetheless, Mabaso still has a glimmer of hope as he is set to face an Australian opponent in the losers’ bracket this morning at 1am. Meanwhile, Sinenkosi faced a challenging battle, losing to Peter Hull from the United Kingdom with a score of 7-3. His chances for a comeback in the losers’ bracket were dashed when he fell to Poland’s Pawel Florecki in a closely-contested match that ended 4-5.

ECSA Secretary General Mbongeni ‘Mdlikiza’ Gamedze expressed disappointment regarding the challenges faced by the players, particularly the use of a much larger table, which is not available in Eswatini. He noted that the pool table used in the tournament is valued at approximately E80 000. “The players performed admirably, but they faced difficulties as it was their first time competing on such a pool table and in a significant tournament. We hope that one day our association will acquire a table of this calibre, as we currently do not have one in the entire country.” Team Eswatini plans to return home once the tournament concludes on December 21.

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