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Rising Leicester City speaks of love from Zimbabwe

Published

4 years ago

August 3, 2021

LIECESTER – The 18-year-old attacking midfielder comes from a sporting family.

His father, Jeffrey Maswanhise, was a top Zimbabwean sprinter, while his older brother and mother also had an interest in the discipline.

His father’s popularity in Zimbabwe has seen many of the nation’s fans watch on over the last week as Tawanda joined Brendan Rodgers’ outfit on their pre-season training camp in Surrey.

After Friday’s final session, the City starlet – known as JT by his team-mates – spared some of his downtime to talk through his experiences as a Fox to date.

“I joined when I was seven or eight years-old,” he explained. “I’ve been here for 10 years now, and when I was younger, I knew that there would be good opportunities for me here, and I’ve been up through all of the age groups.

I was born in Zimbabwe as well, but I came to England when I was two years-old. I’m getting quite a lot of love over there because my dad obviously used to be a former sprinter for Zimbabwe and obviously he’s got a lot of friends and family and fans over there. They are showing a lot of love.

“I always wanted to be a footballer. My mum was into athletics as well because that’s how they met. I’ve just watched my dad all the years, so I was thinking I want to be like that someday.

“It was impressive, I was thinking one day I could be like him as well. Even my brother, he’s 25 now, he used to be a sprinter as well, and enjoyed football as well.”

Such were his performances for the Club’s Under-18s in 2020/21, Maswanhise trained with the first team and was named in a Premier League squad for the first time ahead of City’s clash with Manchester United at Old Trafford.

If the occasion wasn’t big enough already, he watched fellow Academy star Luke Thomas score his first Premier League goal for the Club en route to their first away win over the Red Devils since 1998.

Reflecting on his inclusion in the matchday squad, Tawanda said: “I felt confident when I got told the news the night before that I was in the squad and I didn’t really feel any nerves until I was on the bench.

“It was a good experience inside the changing room. The love and all the togetherness inside the changing room was quite big in there so I felt confident and I was ready to come on.

“We stayed overnight in Manchester, Salford I think it was, and I felt relaxed, thinking about what if I do come on. I was just thinking about different scenarios, if I do come on or if I don’t, and it was quite good actually.

“In that week or so in the lead up to that, I was training with the first team. It’s been tough but I’m managing, I’m getting better and I’m improving day by day, so as long as I’m improving day by day, I can show the coaches what I’m doing.

The past few games I’ve played, I’ve just had little conversations with Brendan about my positioning of where I play. I’m an attacking midfielder so he’s just telling me improvements and successful things I’ve done out of possession, so it’s been really helpful.”

A week away with the first team in Surrey would have no doubt helped him to gather further information to improve his game, as he trains and plays alongside some of the Club’s biggest stars.

He played the opening 45 minutes against Burton Albion, and then impressed during the first half versus Wycombe Wanderers before being named as a substitute in the 3-3 draw with Queens Park Rangers.

“It’s been a lot of games and a lot of training sessions,” he said. “I’ve started both of the games now (pre-QPR) and Brendan has told me make sure you express yourself in the games before you go out.

“I feel like there’s improvements here, it’s been good, I just need to keep going and we’ll see where it takes me. I’m learning. I heard about [Patson] Daka’s goalscoring form last season so when it came to the Burton game, I was thinking: ‘I’ve got someone next to me or someone in front of me that can score, so my job is to assist them or get close to them’.”- lfc.com

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Zimparks defends trophy hunting of collared lion in Hwange

Published

8 hours ago

August 4, 2025

VicFallsLive

BY NOKUTHABA DLAMINI

Zimbabwe’s wildlife authority, Zimparks, has defended the killing of a collared lion, Blondie, in Hwange National Park, despite widespread outrage and criticism from conservationists.

According to BBC News, Blondie, a well-known lion studied by University of Oxford academics, was killed by trophy hunters just outside Hwange National Park in late June. The lion was wearing a collar sponsored by Africa Geographic, a safari company, to support long-term conservation efforts.

In a press statement, Zimparks spokesperson Tinashe Farawo said:

“Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Management Authority (ZimParks) confirms that a recent hunt of a collared lion in Hwange National Park was legally conducted, with the necessary approvals and having fully complied with all regulations. Contrary to ongoing speculation, there was no illegality involved in this hunt. While collared animals are marked for research purposes, this does not exempt them from being legally hunted under regulated circumstances. We urge the public to stop spreading wrong information that may cause unnecessary alarm. ZimParks remains committed to transparent wildlife management upholding the regulations in all activities.”

According to BBC News, Simon Espley, CEO of Africa Geographic, expressed his dismay and anger over the incident, saying that Blondie’s prominent collar did not prevent him from being hunted. Espley also noted that Blondie was a breeding male in his prime, contradicting claims that trophy hunters only target old, non-breeding males.

The incident has drawn comparisons to the killing of Cecil the lion in 2015, which sparked widespread outrage and calls for stricter regulations on trophy hunting.

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Renowned conservationist Alan Elliott passes away at 86

Published

3 days ago

August 1, 2025

VicFallsLive

BY NOKUTHABA DLAMINI

The conservation world is mourning the loss of Alan Elliott, a pioneering conservationist and tourism operator who passed away this morning around 2AM at Materdei Hospital in Bulawayo.

Elliott, affectionately known as “Mandebele,” was 86 years old.

Photo by Charlene Hewat

Elliott’s contributions to conservation and tourism in Zimbabwe are immeasurable. He was one of the first people to bring tourism to Hwange, Zimbabwe’s largest national park, and founded Touch the Wild, a tourism operation that hosted numerous celebrities, including the Queen and Prince Philip.

We then contacted Charlene Hewat, a close associate of Elliott’s Presidential Elephant Research Trust (PERT), to explain further about his conservation work. Hewat described Elliott as an extraordinary conservationist who dedicated his life to protecting elephants. “Alan’s legacy is imprinted on the wild landscapes he loved so dearly and protected so fiercely,” Hewat said in a Facebook post.

In an interview, Hewat elaborated on Elliott’s work, highlighting his efforts to protect elephants in Hwange. “He went and got a decree from President (Robert) Mugabe to protect the presidential elephants, and he received that decree, and they agreed that they would not shoot any elephants within the Dete Hwange area,” Hewat explained.

Elliott’s passing has sent shockwaves throughout the conservation community, with many paying tribute to his remarkable legacy. “He’s a legend. Everybody knows him,” Hewat said. “He was an MP in Hwange, spoke fluent Ndebele, and knew a lot of the ministers. He’s just an amazing man, a legend for Zimbabwe.”

As a testament to his enduring legacy, Elliott had asked Hewat to carry on his work with the Presidential Elephant Research Trust. “It was his vision to promote young Zimbabwean researchers, and that’s something that I share and think we can take forward for the country and for the youth,” Hewat said.

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UPDATE: ZimParks rangers injured in elephant attack receiving medical treatment

Published

3 days ago

August 1, 2025

VicFallsLive

BY STAFF REPORTER

The Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Management Authority (Zimparks) spokesperson, Tinashe Farawo has provided an update on the condition of two rangers who were injured earlier this week by elephants in the Sengwa, Chirisa Safari area.

The rangers, who were investigating a reported case of a snared buffalo, encountered a herd of elephants with calves that charged at them.

According to the update, one of the rangers has undergone treatment for his left arm and is currently in a stable condition.

The other ranger had a successful abdominal operation and is currently receiving surgery for his broken left arm and left leg.

The incident highlights the dangers faced by wildlife rangers in Zimbabwe. In a similar incident in March 2025, a Zimparks ranger was killed by an elephant in Kariba during a routine patrol in the Gatche-gatche area.

The authority has encouraged people to minimize movements at night to reduce the risk of human-wildlife conflicts.