Elizabeth brings out the best in athletes with disabilities
Elizabeth Shikwambana from Nkowankowa received the MEC Excellence Award for her dedication in working with athletes living with disabilities.
The 61-year-old received the award at the prestigious Limpopo Sport and Recreation Awards at The Ranch Resort in Polokwane on Saturday. She started her journey working with people living with disabilities in 1991 at Letaba Special School where she was a coach and a basketball convenor. Ever since she has been involved in different sporting codes including wheelchair tennis, athletics and soccer.
Shikwambana.
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She is currently the athletics coach for athletes living with disabilities in Limpopo. She has represented South Africa as a coach internationally in Trinidad and Tobago and Malawi, just to name a few. She told the Herald that she is proud of her achievements as many athletes, such as Donald Ramphadi, Ishmael Nkuna and Sydwell Mathonsi, have been guided by her to compete internationally.
Ramphadi was named the Sportsman of the Year Living with Disability at the same award ceremony. “Through my passion for working with people living with disabilities, I have realised that they too are just like everyone else and they want to be embraced and loved. “There is no difference between abled-body people and those living with disabilities, they are able to do everything abled-body people do, in their own special way,” Elizabeth concluded.
