KAMPALA – Zonal chairpersons and secretaries convened at the Uganda Secondary Schools Sports Association (USSSA) offices in Old Kampala on Friday, 13th March, to chart the course for the upcoming ball games qualifiers, with a particular focus on athletics.
Representatives from all 19 USSSA zones attended, alongside executive committee members including Hajji Kitezaala Twahil, Okot P’Bitek, Ms. Apolot Harriet, and others, under the chairmanship of USSSA President Mugisha Justus.
In a decisive move to strengthen athletics ahead of the National Championships, USSSA President Mugisha Justus urged all zones to step up their competitive calendars, pledging financial support to incentivize early action.
“Our resolution is clear: each zone must organize two athletics meets before the National Championships,” President Justus declared.
“To facilitate this, we will provide financial support of one million shillings to zones that have already integrated these meets into their calendars.
Our performance in athletics has been below expectations.
Our assessment shows that many talented athletes rely on bursaries to access education and sports opportunities.
However, very few schools currently provide bursaries for athletics, which has limited our ability to identify and nurture talent.” Mugisha.
Addressing performance gaps, he added, “Our athletics results have been below expectations. Many talented athletes rely on bursaries to access education and sports, yet few schools currently provide them. This limits our ability to identify and nurture emerging talent.”
The meeting also emphasized capacity building, a cornerstone of USSSA’s strategy. “At the 2026 Elite Games, all officials deployed were products of our training program, resulting in zero petitions. This demonstrates steady and sustainable improvement in our standards,” Justus Mugisha noted.
The resolutions signal a renewed commitment to structured competitions and athlete development, with USSSA poised to elevate standards and uncover the nation’s next generation of sporting stars.
