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01 September 2020 | Story Dr Nitha Ramnath | Photo Supplied
Devina Harry Kader Asmal Fellowship
The UFS’ Devina Harry was accepted into the Kader Asmal Fellowship Programme.

The UFS’ own Devina Harry is set to travel to Ireland in September 2020 to begin a year-long Fellowship Programme for a Master of Business. As one of 20 students selected from the African continent, Devina was recently accepted into the Kader Asmal Fellowship Programme, which affords her the opportunity to study in Ireland during the 2020/21 academic year.

A research assistant in the Department of Business Management, Devina holds an Honours in Marketing. “I am very grateful to be awarded this scholarship and excited about this new journey,” says Devina, who is scheduled to begin the programme in October 2020. “I hope to come back to South Africa and contribute to my field of study,” she says.

Devina went through a rigorous application process and had to meet the criteria for selection, one of which is having a minimum average grade point of 75% for her honours.

Prof Brownhilder Nene, Head of Department: Business Management, gave Devina some words of encouragement: “You will never know how far you can go unless you try. Thank you, Devina, for stepping out of your comfort zone and getting this scholarship.” 

The Kader Asmal Fellowship Programme is a South African strand of a broader Ireland-Africa Fellows Programme managed by the Irish Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. It was set up in 2012 in honour of the late Professor Kader Asmal, and is a fully-funded scholarship opportunity for those who want to develop skills and knowledge to contribute to the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals in South Africa.

News Archive

Kovsie trailblazing track runner sets South African 200 m record
2015-07-16

Photo: IAAF

Wayde van Niekerk became the only South African, and the fourth athlete in the world, to clock sub-20-seconds in a 200 m race on Tuesday 14 July 2015. With this winning time, he became the fourth member of the prestigious quartet, consisting of Michael Johnson, LaShawn Merritt, Isaac Makwala and himself.

The Kovsie gold medallist’s ground-breaking performance saw him beat world-class 200 m specialist and last year's Diamond League race winner, Alonso Edward of Panama.  Van Niekerk crossed the finish line half a metre ahead of Edward, who was followed by Fujmitsu Kenji of Japan in the third place.

Van Niekerk's 19.94-time at the Diamond League meeting in Lucerne (Switzerland) set a national record, and improved on his personal best. In 2010, he claimed the World Junior Championship title in Moncton, Canada, by covering 200 m in 21.02 seconds.

Recently, he made history by defeating the London 2012 Olympic Games champion, Kirani James, of Grenada in the Caribbean.

On 4 July 2015, he surged 0.79 seconds ahead of Kirani in his number five lane, becoming the first African to cover 400m in less than 44 seconds. The Kovsie student won the race at 43.96, occupying 10th place on the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) Diamond League all-time list.

Kovsies were still celebrating the gold medalist’s South African record-setting time of 44.24 on 13 June 2015 when he dominated the Diamond League meeting. At the previous race in New York, Van Niekerk improved on his own national record of 44.38. With an impressive dash to the finish line at that particular event, he surpassed Christopher Brown’s 400 m record.

In addition to the country’s record, Van Niekerk made his name as one of the continent’s record-breakers. On 7 June 2015, he broke the 1986 African 300 m record. Van Niekerk replaced Ivorian Gabriel Tiacoh’s best time of 31.74 with a 31.63 championship win at the Birmingham Diamond League meeting.  Simultaneously, he bettered Morné Nagel’s 2006 South African national record.

Following his outstanding performance, he was positioned in 10th place on the world list in the men’s 300 m.

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