Uganda's badminton star targets qualification for 2020 Tokyo Olympics

KAMPALA, Nov. 1 (Xinhua) -- Uganda's top female badminton player Shamim Bangi is off to Morocco where she expects to garner points for qualifying for 2020 Tokyo Olympics.

Bangi is attending the 2017 Morocco International Badminton Championship that will attract players from Algeria, Egypt, Uganda, Belgium, Jordan, Slovakia, Denmark and Nigeria.

"It is the wish of any athlete to feature at the Olympics and I am working hard to try and accumulate world ranking points to be able to qualify for the Games," Bangi told Xinhua on Wednesday.

The Badminton World Federation sanctioned championship is scheduled to take place Nov. 9-12 in Casablanca.

After failing to go past the first round at the Egypt International Championship last week, the Ugandan star said she will be more focused to get into the semifinal level or win the trophy.

"I know it will be tough battling against the foreign players who have vast experiences, but my focus is getting to the Olympics," she added.

Simon Mugabi, the Chief Executive Officer of the Uganda Badminton Association said Bangi is among the players selected by the Badminton Confederation Africa to try and qualify for the Tokyo 2020 Olympics.

"These events in Cairo, Casablanca, South Africa and Zambia will also help the top African players selected to accumulate points towards qualifying for the Olympics," said Mugabi.

Mugabi, also a member of BCA's development committee explained that 16 top players in Africa have been selected for this program where they receive full support to participate in various tournaments.

The 16 players include: Shamim Bangi (Uganda), Kate Foo Kune (Mauritius), Doha Hany (Egypt), Joseph Mercy (Kenya), Halla Bouksani (Algeria), Dorcus Adesokan (Nigeria), Johanita Scholtz (South Africa), Adham El Gamal (Egypt), Hakim Abdelrahman (Egypt), Paul Julien (Mauritius), Atish Labah (Mauritius), Sabri Medel (Algeria), Prakash Nath (South Africa), Emmanuel Donkor (Ghana), Adel Hamek (Algeria) Clement Krobakpo (Nigeria).