Kampala — UGANDA'S team to the Africa Athletics Championships is expected here today, after getting a boost from Crown Beverages.

The bottlers of Pepsi Cola and Mirinda products have catered for the tickets of the seven athletes, who will take on the continent's best at the five-day meet that starts Wednesday.

The continental competition is slated for the high altitude Abebe Bekila stadium in the centre of Addis Ababa.

"We have used part of the sh10m they gave us to hand a chance to these athletes to hit the Beijing Olympics qualifying mark. The company will unveil another plan tomorrow (today) during the team's flag-off ceremony," said local athletics federation secretary Beatrice Ayikoru.

They have already funded the national boxing team to the Olympic qualifiers in Namibia and badminton to the Olympic qualifiers in Nigeria.

International kit manufacturers PUMA has provided attire to the team.

Organisers of the championships in Addis Ababa (the morning flower) have promised tight doping control measures in a bid to clean the image of athletics.

Medical and Anti-Doping delegate, Dr. Harold Adams, said his team of 10 chaperons and himself have finalised preparations for both competition and out of competition tests at five testing centres.