Otto headlines Real Stars awards
Jannon Jaye Otto's standout performances during the Afrobasket 2023 tournament in Kigali, Rwanda, earned Uganda a commendable seventh place finish.
Lugogo came alive with an uncontainable surge of jubilation as the monthly ForteBet Real Stars awards recognised players who have illuminated the sports calendar in July.
While the absence of the ladies Woodball Cranes, who secured a silver medal at the third Beach Woodball World Cup in Malaysia, was palpable, the spotlight remained undeniably on other worthy winners.
Basketball brilliance
Jannon Jaye Otto's standout performances during the Afrobasket 2023 tournament in Kigali, Rwanda, earned Uganda a commendable seventh place finish.
The Gazelles, appearing for the third time at the Afrobasket since 1997 and 2015, triumphed over Guinea with a score of 85-44. This victory secured their best-ever 7th place finish at the tournament.
Otto, voted as the best forward and top scorer after amassing 128 points, extended gratitude to her teammates and coaches.
"Personally I want to win, and that pushes me to score," Otto said.
Debut
Notably, draughts made its debut on the podium, with Flavia Kusiima emerging as the victor. Her remarkable journey, starting from casual games with boda-boda rider friends in Masindi, culminated in becoming the star performer for Uganda at the African Draughts Championships in Zambia.
Kusiima, 31, secured the Woman IDF Master title, claiming the women's African champion title in the blitz program and securing silver in the rapid championships.
"This was the first time for me to board a plane, and it feels good winning this award," said Kusiima, who is also a sweater knitter.
Para badminton triumph
Sarah Nazziwa, a para badminton player, had her remarkable achievement acknowledged at the awards. Having started playing badminton just two years ago, Nazziwa secured two gold medals at the 2023 Africa Para-Badminton Championship. Her victories included both the Wheelchair One singles and the doubles title with Egypt's Shaimaa Samy Abdellatiff.
"This gives me the motivation to work even harder," said the 30-year-old athlete, who is actively pursuing Olympic qualification points to Paris 2024.
Continued Moil dominance
The crew of Yasin Nasser and Ali Katumba maintained their stranglehold on the accolades, clinching their fourth consecutive award and their fifth this year.
Katumba, representing the Moil Rally Team, expressed their ambitions, "We shall be back for more. We are heading to Masaka this weekend for the national championship before heading out to Bujumbura Rallye International du Burundi for the African Rally Championship title pursuit."
The team is competing locally and in Africa. After their recent victory at the Eastern Motor Club rally, they are now preparing for the upcoming event in Masaka this weekend.
Currently, they are leading the ARC standings with 54 points, followed by Jas Mangat in second place with 42 points. Patel Karan from Kenya holds the third position with 30 points.
This article originally appeared on Monitor.
Image via FIBA.