Uwezo shares the stage with Greg Norman at B32 Roadshow

teamtownsville on October 11, 2026

Townsville sprint star Uwezo Lubenda shared the stage with North Queensland sporting great Greg Norman at the Brisbane 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games Community Roadshow in Townsville this week.

The pairing brought two generations of North Queensland sport together: a world champion who put the region on the global stage, and a 17-year-old chasing his own home-soil Olympic dream, to discuss the opportunities the upcoming Games had for Regional Queensland and for athletes.

Wearing a QAS branded polo to also tie into the announcement that the Queensland Academy of Sport will trail a regional hub for a year at Lubenda’s training ground, Uwezo tried to remain humble when asked what it would mean to compete on home soil.

“I mean in 2032 i’ll be 23, hopefully in my prime for you to watch… competing on home soil would be unreal”.

2026 has been a breakout year. Backed by a $10,000 scholarship through Team Townsville, a partnership between NQSF, Townsville City Council and Natalie Cook OAM OLY’s Aussie Athlete Fund, he travelled to the United States for the World Athletics U20 Championships. There he ran a personal best of 10.33 to reach the 100m semi-finals and helped Australia’s mixed 4x100m relay set a world U20 record in its heats.

Asked by the audience if he thought he could compete for a medal in Brisbane (like fellow Queensland hopeful Gout Gout), the teenager was remarkably unfazed.

“Gotta stay humble. Lots of work to do yet”.

Uwezo Lubenda Takes on the World Stage

teamtownsville on August 10, 2026

Team Townsville scholarship recipient Uwezo Lubenda recently represented Australia at the World U20 Athletics Championships in Oregon, taking his place among some of the world’s most promising young athletes.

Uwezo got his campaign off to a flying start in the 100m heats, recording a brilliant new personal best of 10.33 seconds. Finishing third in his heat, he secured his place in the semi-finals and continued to make his mark on the international stage.

Later that day, Uwezo returned to the track for the semi-final, running 10.54 seconds to finish 26th overall in an incredibly competitive field of young sprinters from around the world.

To set a new personal best at a World Championships and progress through to the semi-finals is an outstanding achievement. It is a reflection of Uwezo’s talent, determination and the dedication he continues to show in his athletics journey.

Uwezo also competed as part of Australia’s 4x100m mixed relay team. The team had earlier made headlines by setting a world record during the championships, although the record lasted just nine minutes before being broken. In the final, a handover error on the final change unfortunately ended the team’s medal hopes and saw them miss out on what could have been a gold-medal performance.

Despite the disappointment, Uwezo’s performances in Oregon represent an exciting milestone in his developing athletics career.

Team Townsville is proud to support Uwezo through our athlete scholarship program and to play a small part in helping talented local athletes pursue their goals and compete at the highest level. We look forward to following Uwezo’s continued progress and celebrating what comes next in his athletics journey.