Mutsa Mutembwa is a Rhodes Scholar at St Edmund Hall. She completed an MSc in Applied Statistics in September, and started an MSc in Water Science, Management and Policy in October 2011.
The Zimbabwe field hockey team came fourth in the African qualifying tournament, which unfortunately meant that they did not qualify for the Olympics. They lost in the bronze medal match to Ghana in a penalty shoot out. But this was the first time in seven years that Zimbabwe had sent a women's team to an international tournament, they raised their ranking in Africa to fourth and, on a personal note, Mutsa was the team's top scorer.
I played tennis for Zimbabwe until I was 14. One day, I fell on my left shoulder while playing a match, and I couldn't play tennis competitively for a while. I had played hockey recreationally since junior school, but that season I took it a bit more seriously, and ended up being selected for the Zimbabwe Under 16 B team that year. Since then I have represented Zimbabwe at the U16, U18, and U21 and Women's level.
Physically, the preparations start almost two years before the Olympics. Because I am still a student and I do not play hockey professionally, I have had to make sure that I continue to play in competitive leagues. Oxford has been challenging, because time constraints have meant that I couldn't play for the university team. But the club system is very good, so I play for the Oxford City Hockey Club. I am a mentally tough person, so when I join the team for tournaments I am always ready.
My parents have had to spend plenty of money on me. Zimbabwe has had its fair share of economic and financial problems, so funding for sport is very minimal. And time management is key.
I have been training six days a week during off season, and five days a week in peak season. This includes strength sessions including Olympic lifts, body weight work, speed work and agility. I practice with a ball and stick two to three times a week, and then have a game at the end of the week. I also try to run at least 10 miles a week to build up my endurance. Playing for a club means that I have to do most of this training by myself unfortunately. Luckily I had team mates who joined me during the summer, so it helped keep me motivated while the rest of the team was training in Zimbabwe or elsewhere.
I have combined sport and study for so long that it almost feels that they go hand-in-hand. My studies suffer if my hockey is on a slump, and the opposite applies too. It balances out.
Any athlete sees the Olympics as the pinnacle of their career. I am no different. It is very disappointing that we did not qualify, but Zimbabwe hockey has had to overcome so many challenges: loss of player interest, financial issues and administration issues. Just playing in these Olympic qualifiers was a massive achievement for us.
My Olympic heroes and Usain Bolt and Marion Jones. What legends. Marion Jones has paid for her actions, and I respect that.
