Staff Reporter
THE Namibia Sport Commission (NSC) has apologised for the display of incorrectly branded dummy cheques during the official welcome ceremony for Team Namibia following the 2026 Commonwealth Games, while assuring the public that the printing error will not affect the athletes’ monetary rewards.
The apology follows the welcoming ceremony for the Commonwealth Games team returning from Glasgow, Scotland, where boxing medallists were presented with dummy cheques representing their performance bonuses.
In a statement issued by the NSC said it had been brought to its attention that the dummy cheques had mistakenly been printed using the branding of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and the Namibia National Olympic Committee (NNOC), instead of the approved branding of the Ministry of Education, Innovation, Youth, Sport, Arts and Culture.
Although the commission said the error originated from one of its affiliated federations, the Namibia National Olympic Committee, it accepted full responsibility for the incident.
“As the regulatory and coordinating body for sport in Namibia, it is our duty to ensure that all protocols, branding guidelines and government directives are adhered to by all stakeholders. We failed in that duty, and we do not seek to shift the blame to any single entity,” the statement said.
The commission extended what it described as its “most sincere and unreserved apologies” to all affected parties for the embarrassment and breach of protocol.
The NSC said it is introducing stricter quality control measures to prevent similar incidents in future.
It announced that all materials, cheques and branding to be used at official sporting events will now be subject to mandatory verification and approval by the NSC Communications Directorate before being displayed publicly.
The commission also reassured athletes, coaches and the public that the branding error had no impact on the financial rewards due to the medal winners.
“The monetary rewards and benefits received by the athletes, coaches and the team manager remain unchanged. The printing error regarding the artwork on the dummy cheques has no bearing on the actual amount of money awarded. The financial disbursements as per the reward policy remain intact and have been processed accordingly,” the statement said.
The NSC said it views the incident as a learning opportunity and remains committed to strengthening governance and maintaining the integrity of sports administration in Namibia.
Photo: Ministry of Education Innovation, Youth, Sports, Arts and Culture
