The Uganda Secondary Schools Sports Association (USSSA) has introduced new changes to the age categories used in its annual secondary school sports competitions, in a move aimed at giving students of all age groups a fair opportunity to participate.
The changes were announced by the USSSA President, Justus Mugisha, during an executive meeting held at GNS Plaza in Kampala.
Mugisha explained that the adjustments are intended to promote inclusivity and ensure that no learner at the senior school level is left out of the competitions due to restrictive age limits.
Under the new arrangement, the U16 category has been removed and replaced with the U17 category, while the U14 category has also been scrapped and replaced with U15 competitions.
With the revised structure, students will now compete in three age brackets. The U20 category will accommodate learners aged between 16 and 20 years.
The U17 category will bring together students aged 15, 16 and 17, while the U15 category will include learners aged 13, 14 and 15.
According to Mugisha, the new system is designed to ensure that students across all age ranges in senior school are able to compete at least once in these national sports competitions.
USSSA organizes inter-school sports competitions that attract thousands of students from across the country every year, and the new age classifications are expected to take effect in the upcoming sports calendar for all USSSA-sanctioned events. This comes at a time when schools will reopen on 8th this Sunday
