Sports management and performance in chartered private universities in Uganda: A case of Nkumba University

Abstract

The study was about sports management and performance in chartered private universities in Uganda focusing on Nkumba University. The study was guided by the following objectives; i) to determine how recruitment of athletes and coaches has influenced sports performance at Nkumba University, ii) to examine the extent to which retention of coaches has influenced athletes performance at Nkumba University and iii) to establish how the sports structure has affected the performance of athletes at Nkumba University.

From a sample of 58 respondents, the study discovered that coaches are not solicited through being scouted around but are indentified and contacted so that they take on the opportunities for coaching. Further, the Games and Sport Union entices the best athletes in Volleyball, Football, handball and netball which are given preferential consideration. The services of good coaches and athletes who are easily convinced to get to the university on university bursaries as they engage in competitions for the university, the enhanced sports performance before the turn of 2020 which saw a gradual decline in recruitment of athletes and coaches as well as sustained decline in the various sports disciplines. The existing coaches have built teams by gelling their players into potent teams in the various sports disciplines for sports competition and activities like Nkumba Open, Inter-Schools, Inter-University, and East African University Games, though over the past year the occurrence of the Coronavirus pandemic has made it impossible for such meeting to take place on the other hand, there are times when the teams and their respective coaches find themselves on holiday or relived of their duties temporarily when they cannot compete. The coaches help the athletes to promote coaching efficacy or usefulness during their stay at university. The games and sports are catered for, although variedly by the university through the Games and Sports Union who work on produce a workable work plan which is supported by the university administration to which the obliged to enable the various sports disciplines work. Through this, the university tries to uphold its mandate of sponsoring games and sports in the university. The Games and Sports Union is a potent department in the university which has set the pace for sports development and keep it afloat as well as giving the university credence in the country and internationally as for example in 2019, the university contributed to much of the team’s performance for example Uganda Universities with Nkumba providing many of the members won the world university netball championships and others.

The study recommended that there should be improvement in the recruitment of coaches and athletes by ensuring that the successful candidates are scrutinized through a rigorous interview exercise and the successful ones are contracted for service in the games and sports union on permanent contracts, there should be appointment of successful athletes to become coaches in the various disciplines in the university and there should consistent motivation of athletes and coaches in order to consolidate them with the various University teams so that there can be consistent and continuous unbroken performance in sports, development of unrivaled games and sports management at team levels and establishment of a legacy which would motivate future managers to strive for higher accomplishments.