MEET AND GREET: DR TSHUBE

1. Briefly introduce yourself to our readers (profile).

a. Dr. Tshepang Tshube is a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Physical Education, Health & Recreation at the University of Botswana. Tshube holds a Ph.D. in Sport and Exercise Psychology from Michigan State University.

2. What is your mandate in UB and national teams?

a. My primary mandate at the University of Botswana is to teach sport and exercise psychology and also do research on sports related issues. I am an active researcher in Southern Africa published in areas of life skills, mental skills, dual career, coach-athlete relations, and elite athlete retirement transition. My recent publications include Southern Africa perspectives to coach-athlete relations, Olympians Career Path in Southern Africa, and Cultural Perspectives to Sport Psychology.

I have been awarded amongst others the 2013 IOC Graduate Scholar Award and in collaboration with colleagues, the 2017 African Alliance Award. In addition to my academic work, I am a member of the Botswana National Olympic Committee High-Performance Commission. I also provide sports psychology services to team Botswana. I often work and travel with team Botswana. I accompanied team Botswana to the 2016 Olympic Games, 2018 Commonwealth Games and several Africa Championships.

3. What type of outreach do you apply to students and athletes who seek the type of services you can provide?

a. My students are heavily engaged in a number of outreach activities. First, my first year undergraduate students set up their own volunteer experiences at sporting events/ institutions and or any sport outlet. The purpose of this engagement is to have students learn crucial skills such as communication, time management, collaboration, and adaptability. This assignment has been rewarding. Some of my students build network and resume from this assignment. Graduate students organize workshops and present in different platforms. For example, my students and I just hosted a panel discussion on the proposed 10 community sports facilities. a. My plan and dream about sports in Botswana is to educate through research, workshops, presentations, seminars and lectures. In my opinion, most of our challenges are due to lack of expertise in a number of areas. For example, our coaches need to be well trained in holistic athlete development. Focusing on specific athletic skills is not enough. In addition, our leaders need to know that sport management and leadership is a science. a. I have hosted a number of lectures, workshops and seminars. Note that I have not hosted a sports medicine symposium but generally sport psychology, leadership and athlete development symposiums. As indicated in your previous question, there is need for more knowledge in our sports community. One of the reasons for my seminars is to bridge the gap between academia and practice. Concepts and theories developed in academia need to be tested in applied settings.

4. Let’s talk about your overall plan for Sports in the country hence you sometimes help at national level.

5. Mr Tshube you’ve hosted Sports Science and Medicine symposium, what actually prompted you to have this?

6. From the symposium you touched on many aspects of athletes health, finance management and serious injuries that can end their careers can you briefly take us through this a. My seminar did not address these a. I foresee more challenges in the future. I am deeply worried about the relationship between the Ministry of Basic Education and the sports community. There is need for a solution in this impasse because teachers are core to the development of athletes and sports in the country. There should be a solution to remunerations on this issues. If BISA fails to organize and host sports across the country, we lose a huge number of talented athletes and that kills sports development. Research provide evidence that over 90% of world class athletes are developed in a school set up. If we are really committed to athlete development, we need to focus our efforts to schools. a. I currently enjoy a very positive relationship with our sports community including different sporting codes. I had the honour to work with a lot of federations including but not limited to BNOC, BNSC, BAA, BONA, and BOSA. a. I have a huge network globally. I have collaborations at Michigan State University, The University of Queensland, Western Kentucky University, University of Ghana, and San José State University. These collaborations have been significant in benefiting our sports in Botswana. For example, my colleague at The University of Queensland and I were in 2015 funded by the Association of Applied Sport Psychology to conduct workshops in Botswana on life skills and sport psychology. I have just been invited to spend a week as visiting scholar at San José State University. I will give lectures and develop network for further collaborations. a. Facilities are not enough for success at major games. We need clear talent development programs.

7. Future of Sports in the country, how do you see it especially with development structures that we have, do we see more medals in the upcoming global competitions?

8. How is your relationship with sports codes in the country including the teams?

9. On the international level, do you have relations with your counterparts outside the country and is it of beneficial to the sports in the native nations?

10. Lastly like you mentioned we have facilities but why are the other countries still beating us when it comes to games and your last words please!

Inspiring Sweet Future For All” Its guided by the United Nations Sustainable goals of Health, Wellness and Education. When Blue Crystal Sukiri sponsor a wellness event like Kazungula it provides platform for Batswana to take part in wellness activities resulting in healthier living that has been proven to reduce cases of NCDs.