MBABANE – The Eswatini Government is expected to pay athletes a combined E125 000 after the country collected 15 medals across three months of international competition.
The payments will be made through the Eswatini Sport and Recreation Council as part of the official programme designed to reward athletes, who deliver podium finishes on the continental and international stage.
According to the Ministry of Sports, Culture and Youth Affairs’ second quarter performance report, covering the period from July to September, Eswatini participated in eight competitions. Only three of those teams returned home with medals around their necks.
Swimming led the charge with a haul of 11 medals. Darts followed with three, while the men’s national netball team brought home a silver medal. The Eswatini Swimming Association collected one gold, five silver and five bronze at the African Aquatics Zone V Championships staged in Botswana in early September.
Meanwhile, the Eswatini National Darts Association added one silver and two bronze medals from the African Union Sports Council (AUSC) Region V Championships, also held in Botswana in August. The men’s national netball side completed the tally with a silver medal at the Africa Netball Cup that was hosted by Kenya.
Under the current government policy, a gold medal is worth E20 000; a silver medal carries E10 000; and a bronze is valued at E5 000. The 15-medal tally therefore amounts to E125 000 , where E20 000 is for the single gold; E70 000 for the seven silvers ;and E35 000 for the seven bronzes.
Other teams came home empty-handed from major events that offered podium prizes of up to E50 000 for gold. These included Team Eswatini in the Glasgow 2026 Commonwealth Games and the 46th Chess Olympiad, among others.
“While the athletes did not advance past their initial preliminary rounds, the team celebrated several season-best performances in athletics and swimming,” the ministry says in its report.
The ministry has recommended a series of long-term measures aimed at lifting the country’s competitive standing. These include expanding high-performance training camps, increasing international match exposure for national teams and upgrading local facilities for combat sports and athletics tracking. It believes such steps are essential if Eswatini is to convert more of its international appearances into podium finishes in the seasons ahead.
