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04 May 2018
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From left: Marné Mentz (second), Ts’epang Sello (first) and Tyler Beling (third) were in a class of their own, taking the first three spots in the 1 500m at the University Sport South Africa national championship in Sasolburg.
As expected, the Kovsie athletics team made the University Sport South Africa (USSA) national championship, held over the weekend in Sasolburg, one to remember.
Eight athletes earned gold medals, which is twice as many as last year. The total of 24 medals (including seven silver and nine bronze) is also double the number won in 2017.
They ended third, just one gold medal below the University of Johannesburg. The female athletes won the women’s competition and contributed to seven of the eight gold medals. The Kovsies dominated the 1 500m and 5 000m events in which they both claimed the first, second and third spots. They even grabbed the fourth and sixth position in the 5 000m in which Kesa Molotsane triumphed, with Tyler Beling second, and Marné Mentz third. Mentz and Beling swapped places in the 1 500m behind Ts’epang Sello.
Molotsane also won the 10 000m in a record time of 34:49.16 which is a massive three minutes and five seconds quicker than the previous record.
The 800m title also now belongs to Sello. She and Beling won a third medal (bronze) as members of the 4 x 400m relay women’s team.
The other gold medalist was Lara Orrock (3 000m steeplechase), Lynique Beneke (long jump), Esli Lamley (pole vault) and Rynardt van Rensburg (800m).
All five Kovsies who competed at the CAA Southern Region Youth & Junior Championships that took place over the weekend in Boksburg, won medals. They were Pakiso Mthembu (gold, 5 000m), Michaéla Wright (gold, long jump), Tyler (gold, 1 500m), Tsebo Matsoso (silver, 200m) and Orrock (silver, 3 000m steeplechase).
Odeion String Quartet receives international acclaim
2014-12-22
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The Odeion String Quartet (OSQ) is a flagship of the UFS and symbolises the university’s commitment to the arts. Most recently, the OSQ walked away with the award for Best Classical Music Performance at the 2014 Kanna ceremony.
It was established in 1991 as a permanent full-time resident string quartet – at present the only resident string quartet at a South African university – and functions as an independent academic department at the UFS.
The members of the quartet are Samson Diamond (leader and first violin), Sharon de Kock (violin), Jeanne-Louise Moolman (viola) and Anmari van der Westhuizen (cello). They have an extensive national and international background and are highly regarded in music circles as soloists and chamber musicians. The members of the quartet play an important strategic role in the development of symphony orchestra music and in classical music training in the Free State. They are exemplary teachers and attract students from all over the country. The Junior Odeion String Quartet and Odeion Sinfonia provide a unique chamber music training experience to selected students.
They regularly perform to critical acclaim in all the major music centres in South Africa, as well as in SADC countries such as Zimbabwe and Zambia. During 2013 they performed at concerts in Belgium, Germany and Switzerland, where they received standing ovations and very positive reviews.
The quartet is also set on giving back to musical communities around the country, with workshops offering guidance on playing techniques and life-skills that are essential for young people who intend to pursue a career in the music sector.