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28 December 2020 | Story Ruan Bruwer | Photo Supplied
Karla Pretorius Gsport Awards
Flying the Kovsie flag high: Kesa Molotsane, Raynard van Tonder, Karla Pretorius, and Sikholiwe Mdletshe.

While there hasn’t been any student sporting action since the end of March, this didn’t prevent a couple of Kovsies from making the news.  

Three former Kovsie sports stars, Kesa Molotsane, Raynard van Tonder, and Karla Pretorius, as well as current student, Sikholiwe Mdletshe, received recognition. 

At the Gsport Awards (for South African females in sport), Pretorius won the Global Woman in Sport trophy thanks to her stellar 2019 performance for which she was named the Player of the Tournament at the Netball World Cup. 

Getting credit for hard work 

“I see the award as a reward for your efforts and sacrifices. I am grateful for the wonderful platform that Gsport provides women,” said Pretorius.  

The athlete, Molotsane, is one of the digital education publication Inside Education’s 100 South African shining stars. Seven individuals were recognised in the sports and recreation category for contributing to their communities through excellence in their career fields. 

“This award is not just for me, but for the community that I’m impacting. I want to continue making a change in the society through my athletics career.” 

Van Tonder won the category Four-Day Domestic Player of the Year at the Knights cricket awards function. He finished the competition as the leading run-scorer with an average of 70.25.  

“It was a very big honour to receive the credit for your hard work. It wouldn’t have been possible without the incredible support of my Knights teammates and the great work of our coaching staff.” 

Mdletshe, captain of the South African U21 netball team in 2019 and 2020, feature among the newspaper Mail & Guardian’s 200 young South Africans. She is one of six winners in the sports category. “I see this as an opportunity to keep learning, growing, and using what I have to make the changes that we as young individuals want to see. The change we want to see starts with us.”

News Archive

Johann swims his way to Olympics
2016-05-18


Johann van Heerden from the University of the Free State has qualified for the Paralympic Games in the swimming pool, and is now waiting to hear if he will be included in the South African team. Photo: Nadya van Heerden.

In the past couple of months, Johann van Heerden has been swimming his way to the Paralympic Games, and is still preparing as if he will be going to Rio de Janeiro.

The Kovsie swimmer, who will know whether he has been included in the Paralympic team in July 2016, feels his training is progressing well. The Olympics will be held in Brazil from 7 to 18 September 2016. If all goes well, this could be the first of several Olympics for the 20-year-old second-year Education student from the University of the Free State (UFS).

Dream year for Education student

Van Heerden (cerebral palsy), whose hero is the former Paralympic superstar Natalie du Toit, has had huge successes in the run-up to the 2016 Olympics. Among others, he was named the best senior swimmer at the Nedbank National Championships for the Physically Disabled in Bloemfontein in March 2016. At the South African Senior Championships in Durban in April 2016, he qualified for the Olympics in the 100 m breast-stroke with an A-qualifying time, and in the 50 m and 100 m freestyle with B-qualifying times.

Only three male swimmers to Olympics

However, he has to wait until the announcement of the South African Paralympic team, since only three male and three female swimmers will be selected. He will not be competing in another major event before the Olympics. “My short-term goal is to compete in this year’s Games, and, in the long term, I would like to reach even greater heights at the 2020 Games,” he said. Du Toit is an inspiration to him because “she was hard-working, and she had a lot of drive”.

Other students from CUADS also excel

At the above-mentioned National Championships, Van Heerden won a total of five gold medals (200 m medley, 100 m breaststroke, 50 m freestyle, 50 m breaststroke, and 200 m breaststroke) and one silver medal (100 m freestyle). Other students from the Center for Universal Access and Disability Support at the UFS also excelled.

Dineo Mokhosoa (cerebral palsy) won three gold medals (long jump, shot-put, and discus), while the athlete Louzanne Coetzee (blind) shattered the world record in the 5 000 m, as well as the Africa record in the 1 500 m. Juanré Jenkinson (cerebral palsy) won two silver medals (discus and shot-put) while Danie Breitenbach (blind) won two gold medals (800 m and 1500 m).

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