Faith Drive Soccer Academy founder dies
Nelia Musikavanhu, the founder of the Faith Drive Soccer Academy in Zimbabwe, has passed away following a short illness. She is remembered for her pioneering work in developing women's football in the Manicaland region.
Why it matters
Her death marks the loss of a significant figure in grassroots sports development and women's empowerment in Zimbabwe.
FAITH Drive Soccer Academy founder Nelia Musikavanhu has died.
Musikavanhu passed away at a Mutare hospital in the early hours of Thursday morning after a short illness. A herbalist by profession, she is survived by six children: Edith, Dumisani, Tsitsi, Skathele, Zenzele and Siphelani.
She established the Mutare-based academy in the early 1990s, building it into one of Zimbabwe's leading development hubs for women's football. Players who came through the academy have gone on to feature across clubs in the Zimbabwe Women Premier Soccer League (ZWPSL).
Her son, Dumisani Sithole, a former ZWPSL vice-chairperson who now chairs the academy, confirmed her death and spoke of her legacy.
"Gogo's Musikavanhu's vision and leadership is going to be carried out by us, the kids, since it was a family project led by and founded by Gogo in the early 1990s to date," Sithole told NewsDay Sport.
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