According to Lubega medics from the International Paralympic Committee disqualified him claiming that his elbow was performing well compared to other athletes in his category and advised him to undergo surgery to cut off the upper part of his hand so as to qualify.
Abdu Karim
Lubega has decided to undergo surgery to qualify for the Paralympic games. Lubega
was part of Uganda’s delegation that travelled to Morocco in February 2020 to
participate in the All Africa Paralympic Games, which was also the Paralympic
qualifier for athletics, blind ball, javelin and long jump among other sports.
He was disqualified
by the classifiers at the event claiming that he didn’t have a class he
belonged to qualify for the Paralympic games. The athlete has an
improperly developed right without fingers, which affects the movement of the elbow
while running.
According to
Lubega, medics from the International Paralympic Committee disqualified him
claiming that his elbow was performing well compared to other athletes in his
category and advised him to undergo surgery to cut off the upper part of his
hand so as to qualify.
//Cue in: “Nali ngenze nzanye ….
Cue out: …. mu mbeera enungi,”//
James Senkungu, the National team coach of the Paralympic team, says the entire
delegation was shocked by Lubega’s disqualification because they had used
local classifiers and confirmed that he belongs to the category of Para
athletes.
//Cue in:
“We knew that ….
Cue out: …. that’s what happened.”//
Lubega has now
decided to undergo surgery to finalize what is required of him to participate
in the Paralympic games. Unfortunately,
it will be late for the athlete to participate in the Tokyo Olympic 2020. However,
Lubega says that he has his eyes on all other international competitions
including the 2024 Olympics in Paris, France.
Lubega says that he needs Shillings 6.7 million for the surgery and might need some
assistance because he cannot fund it all by himself.
//Cue in: “Nasooka nembuzabuzibwamu …..
Cue out: …. nga zezetagisa”
The Para-athletics
classification is used to determine the kind of disabilities each athlete has.
The athletes are designated under classes and each class has a code consisting
of a letter and two digits, with the latter being either "T" or
"F" (indicating track or field events) and the number representing
the level of physical ability. T/F11–13 is for visual impairment, T/F20
intellectual impairment, T/F31–34 movement disorder and cerebral palsy and T/F40–41
for dwarfism among others. Lubega fell
in the T/F category, which includes people with impairments on their arms.
According to
Senkungu, the major purpose of the classification is to balance the athletes and
ensure that sure no one gains an advantage over the other.
Fahad Muganga
Freelancer