EDMUND MAKUTYA

EDMUND MAKUTYA

 

One of Zimbabwe’s Leading wheelchair athletes, Edmund Makutya says before he started participating in sport for people with disabilities,  he was in denial over his condition and would feel pity for himself.

Makutya has represented the country in several international wheelchair races and led team Zimbabwe as the captain for five years. As a retired athlete he hopes to establish a sports academy for people with disabilities.

Makutya gave 1Zimlegends a blow-by-blow account of his life and his rise to fame including some of his unfordable races.

AFFECTED BY POLIO WHEN HE WAS FOUR

I was born Edmund Makutya on February 3, 1965 in Buhera District in Manicaland Province. I stayed with my mother, Monica Viriri, in that rural area and my father Edson Mapurisa Makutya was working in Harare (then Salisbury). I was born in a family of twelve, six boys and six girls.

I was affected by polio at the age of four years. My mother took me to Harare where she would carry me on her back from Mbare to Jairos Jiri Centre in Southerton for physiotherapy.

When my condition improved, I was taken back to Buhera where I started grade one at Viriri Primary School in 1972.  I stayed with my maternal   grandmother since her home was close to the school. I was a bright pupil and would always take position one in class.

I was at Viriri Primary School from 1972 to 1974. In 1975 I was transferred to Matsveru Primary School about twenty-nine kilometres from Viriri. The distance to school was too long for my condition and I had to go back to Viriri Primary for my grade six in 1976.

Just three months after I started grade six, the school was closed because of the liberation war. I went back to my parents where I stayed during the war from 1976 to 1980.  I then came to Harare where my father wanted me to start from grade six at Jairos Jiri Centre in Southerton but I refused and opted to start in grade seven. I worked hard and passed the examination with nine units.

I did my secondary education at Harare High School from 1982 to 1985. During my days at school, l really wanted to be a sportsman but unfortunately there were no sporting facilities for children with disabilities. The late Dynamos maestro, George ‘Mastermind’ Shaya, was my role model.

HOW I JOINED SPORTS FOR PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES

In 1986 I met the late Grace Mutseura who introduced me to Luke Dangirwa who was playing wheelchair basketball at Richwood Paraplegic Club. This was a dream come true for me. I really enjoyed this game. Mukoma Luke,as we affectionately called him is the guy who taught me how to push the wheelchair, bounce the ball and shoot.

I excelled in wheelchair basketball to an extent of being one of the best players in the Richwood Paraplegic team. I was voted chairman of Richwood Paraplegic Club in 1986 and in 1987 I resigned as chairman and started to participate in wheelchair racing introduced at Danhiko by a Swedish guy called Bengt Emulskog.

I participated in too many races competing against very good athletes like Samson Chivasa, Peter Moyo,Batsirai Bell, just to mention a few.

Some of the races included the Ok Peter Gradwell 42km road race, Boart Longyear 32 km race, Mashonaland Holdings 21km race and Great Zimbabwe Masvingo 50km race just to mention a few. I did so well that I won most of these races. I continued with the fine form into the following year 1988 and I was duly voted Disabled Sportsman of the Year. That title gave me the automatic qualification for the Oita International Wheelchair Marathon in Japan.

THE MEMORABLE OITA INTERNATIONAL WHEELCHAIR MARATHON IN JAPAN

As I prepared for the Oita race I was told that the type of wheelchair I had was not suitable for international events so I borrowed one from a fellow wheelchair athlete Rob Wickham.

The flight to Japan was my first time to get into an aeroplane but I didn’t encounter any problems except fatigue from the long trip of almost 12 hours .

The welcome was second to none. The Japanese are very nice people and they make you feel at home.

 

On race day, I was so nervous because my wheelchair was the oldest of them all and I was one of the only two black people out of a strong field of 401 athletes.

I thought I was going to be the last man home but as someone who eats sadza, I defied all odds and came out number 287. Considering the type of chair I had, almost everyone was surprised. The athletes out there have the best equipment. If we get all they have, surely the sky will be the limit.

I USED TO WONDER WHY I AM THE ONLY ONE WITH A DISABILITY IN A FAMILY OF TWELVE

When I was still young, I asked my uncle why I was the only disabled person in a family of twelve. Back then, my uncle couldn’t give me a satisfactory answer. So when I came back from Japan, he organized a welcome back party. I was then asked to narrate the whole story. I explained how the journey started – from Harare to Lilongwe International Airport in Malawi then Jomo Kenyatta Airport in Nairobi Kenya and from Kenya to Amsterdam in Netherlands. From Netherlands we endured the 12-hour non-stop journey to Tokyo in Japan. From Tokyo we proceeded to Osaka then Fukuoka and lastly our final destination, the host city OITA. After explaining all this, that’s when my uncle opened up and said,

“When you asked me that question why you are the only one who has a disability.  I now have an answer for you. We are gathered here today to celebrate your achievements despite your disability. If you were not disabled you were not going to qualify because they clearly stated that it was a race for people with disabilities. As for me your uncle, I have never seen an aeroplane close by but you changed them like socks. That’s why God made you disabled, he wanted you to see all this. So everything happens for a purpose. That’s God’s plan.  “You must thank God for who you are and what He has done for you”.

THE HEIDELBERG INTERNATIONAL ROLLSTOL MARATHON IN GERMANY

I continued training and made some significant strides in improving my time and as a result I got more invitations. I got an invitation from Germany to compete in a race in that country. The offer would cover food and accommodation but not the air ticket. I would like to thank our media. They covered that story and I got sponsorship from Air Zimbabwe. When I went to Germany I did very well.

That same year I got another invitation from Oita Japan where I subsequently competed in 1994, 1995, 1996 and in 2000.  In 1996 I qualified for Atlanta 96 – the Paralympics in Atlanta Georgia – United States of America. In Atlanta I scored my personal best in a race that I competed against top international athletes.

One athlete Heinz Frei from Switzerland who was the world champion during that time had five coaches,a physiotherapist, a dietician, a psychologist, a technical adviser and a mechanic for the wheelchair. Surely with all this at your disposal what else can you expect?

From 1997 to 1999 I was doing local races only. In 2007, a female fellow athlete Tabitha Tsatsa advised me and my fellow wheelchair athlete Elford Moyo to talk to Mr Dewald Steyn a South African sports agent for us to be invited to participate in races in SA.

Because of our excellent track record here in Zim, Mr Steyn didn’t hesitate to invite us. Our first race was in Stellenbosch – Cape Town. As expected, we didn’t disappoint. Elford Moyo was first, I was second and third was Gerith Hendricks a South African. The next race was in Port Elizabeth the Nedbank 21 km road race. I came first and my friend Elford was second.

We did so well in SA that some of the athletes there influenced their sports organizations to ban us. This resulted in a ban of foreigners for most lucrative races in SA.

THE MEMORABLE SIMON VENGESAI MUZENDA 21.1KM RACE

One race I will never forget is the Dr Simon Vengesai Muzenda 21. 1km road race in Gutu, Masvingo. I came first in that race. The late Vice President of Zimbabwe Dr ‘Mzee’ S.V. Muzenda presented prizes to the winners. Before giving me the prize, he gave me a handshake and I jokingly said I wasn’t going to wash my hand for the next two weeks because I got a handshake from the President. After hearing this, Dr Mzee was so happy and he gave me $200. Dr Mzee is one person who treated all people equally. He didn’t want to see people with disabilities looked down upon.

Another memorable day is the day we pushed our wheelchairs from Harare Kopje to the National Sports Stadium on Independence Day where I personally handed over the torch to the late former President of Zimbabwe Robert Mugabe.

I was appointed national team captain in 2011. I was also voted President of our organization – Wheelchair and Hand cycling Racers Association of Zimbabwe. My desire is to see youngsters getting into sport. If I had a car I would be going to places such as Jairos Jiri or Tsanga Lodge in Mutare where I can groom some youngsters to fill in the gaps left by us the elders. I am glad that now we have some local races that pay good prizes to wheelchair athletes.

HOW I WAS CHEATED AT THE VICTORIA FALLS MARATHON BUT CAME FIRST

In one of the Victoria Falls Marathon editions, my friend Elfort Moyo and I were told that the starting time was 7.15am but the time was changed to 7.00am. The two of us were not informed of the development. As a result we arrived after 7am when the other wheelchair athletes had gone. As soon as we got there, Sharon Stead one of my biggest sponsors was really disappointed to see me getting there late. Her daughter Sav even cried to show her anger that there was no chance of me winning that race. The two of us took off at exactly 7:15am. We pushed so hard that when we were about half way, we had beaten almost three quarters of the athletes. With about three kilometres to go, there was only one athlete Alexander Mkandla in front of me. When it was a kilometer to go I pumped it up and beat him to get to the finishing line in first position. Seeing me getting there first was a miracle for Mrs Stead and her daughter Sav who started crying again but this time these were tears of joy. They had totally ruled me out of the equation because I was the last to leave the starting line but was surprisingly the first one to cross the finishing line.  That is one of my most memorable races.

TOWARDS THE STABLISHMENT OF AN ACADEMY

My main aim is to establish a sports academy where I will be able to help the disadvantaged aspiring sportspersons with disabilities.In the year 2012, I was the 1st runner up in the Annual National Sports Awards. I am glad to inform you that I am a father of six boys. My wife is Nyasha Vhanga. As a Christian, I am happy with what I am because I know that everything happens for a purpose. God is GREAT.