Six swimmers, including Swagiah Mubiru, Benjamin Noel Lutaaya, Gloria Ann Muzito, Kirabo Namutebi, Jesse Sengonzi and Tendo Mukalazi are in Singapore for the 2025 World Aquatics Championships that started on the 11th July and will run until the 3rd of August 2025.
This Ugandan team will also be joined by three masters’ swimmers, Donald Rukare, Catherine Nakimuli, and another male yet to be named.
The World Aquatics Championship is a long event that involves 67 events that include but are not limited to swimming, open water swimming, artistic swimming, water polo, diving and others. The events are for both the age group swimmers and the masters’ swimmers.
The Ugandan team will participate in only two events, that is, open water swimming and pool events, which will include 5 km Open Water Swimming with Swaigah Mubiru and Benjamin Noel Lutaayathe participants, their first world championship.
“I’m prepared on how to swim through the water. I hope that water is in a calm altitude that I can swim properly. I’m confident in the training I have had and my coaches. In this championship, I hope to get to the finish line because usually I haven’t been able to finish, but I hope this time around I’m able to finish.
“I know that team is going to perform well because we have a bunch of very experienced swimmers like Gloria and Jesse, who have been able to represent Uganda on the world stage, and then Benjamin, who has also been recruited, the new team member,” said Swaigah Mubiru – Open Water Swimmer and Lady Team Captain.
In the Pool, Uganda will take part in the 50m and 100m freestyle events to be done by Gloria Ann Muzito who recently attained a B-class swimming time in freestyle swimming in Sweden. Kirabo Namutebi will compete in the 50-meter freestyle and 50 butterfly events.
For the men, Jesse Ssubi Ssengonzi will do the 50m and 100m butterfly events, as Tendo Mukalazi, who is also the team captain, will do the 50m and 100m freestyle events.
“Right now, I’m trying to get back to that good level of swimming and with each World Championship, I am always trying to get better and better, aiming for those B times. This time also I am also aiming at the Olympic Games in LA. So, Singapore is the first building block towards LA, qualifying for the Olympic Games.
“The Hungarian scholarship basically provided us with the ability to train as high elite swimmers. So, it kind of puts me on like the same level ground with the different athletes out there. How they compete, how they eat without it, I don’t think I’d be swimming as well as I am swimming right now.
“They always prepare us to the best of our abilities. We train to the hardest that we could train at to get out the best results, and that training will keep me locked in mentally and physically during the competition,” said Tendo Mukalazi about his readiness and just concluded a swimming scholarship in Hungary.
Meanwhile coach Coach Abel Ddamulira says the team is ready.
“I do believe that since we are coming out of the nationals and all the people on the team really did perform very well during the nationals. I do believe that the team is ready to do the best.
“For Open Water Swimming, last year I happened to have gone for an open water clinic in Zanzibar and one of the swimmers, that is Benjamin Lutaaya, was part of the team. So, I do believe that we just need to keep pushing the swimmers well and I do believe they will perform very well.”
The Ugandan team will be in action on the 15th, 16th and 18th of July, and then later on the Ugandan masters will also be in action.