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22 December 2022 | Story Jóhann Thormählen | Photo Anja Aucamp
Peter Makgato
Peter Makgato showed true perseverance in coming back after being out of action for more than a year with an Achilles tendon injury. The Kovsie long jumper won a bronze medal at the South African Championships in 2022.

If it wasn’t for Peter Makgato’s UFS support system, he would have been lost to South African athletics. The road of recovery after a serious injury can be lonesome, but he was never alone.

The promising long jumper had to learn to walk again after the injury to his Achilles tendon and could only compete more than a year after his dreams were shattered in November 2020.

Only months after returning to jumping in 2022, he was winning medals again.

Keeping me focused

“Without KovsieSport, I believe I would have hung up my spikes after that injury,” says Makgato. “Throughout the entire journey back, I had support from my coach (Emmarie Prinsloo; Head of KovsieSport Jumping Academy) and Oom DB (Prinsloo; Head of Athletics at KovsieSport).”

He also praises “the expert medical help” from Kovsie Health and says he went through nothing alone. “My progress was monitored by a team that knew me before the injury and this meant they were able to keep me focused on the progress and not on the injury.”

Although he had injuries before, Makgato says the emotional challenges were much bigger. “What really helped me were a few words from Wayde van Niekerk days after my operation when I went back to the track on crutches. He told me not to lose my head.

“That is the best advice you can give someone in my position. Physically I was broken, I had to make sure that mentally I fought to stay above the waters.”

Bigger goals in mind

He was only able to walk again from May 2021, started rehab in August 2021, and was running properly by December 2021.

He was only able to jump competitively again in March 2022, and a month later claimed a bronze medal at the South African Championships (7,47 m). This was followed by a USSA bronze in May 2022 (7,46 m).

“I had bigger goals in mind. Now that I look back, I realise that for a person who could not even run properly five months before and who had little preparation time, I was doing pretty good.”

And now the Master of Laws student has his sights on bigger things again: The World Athletics Championships next year and the Olympic Games in 2024.

News Archive

The influence of load shedding on the evening timetable
2008-01-31

The load shedding that is being applied at present also has a certain influence on especially the evening module and venue timetable. As part of the contingency planning of the UFS, an alternative module and venue timetable has been compiled so that classes that cannot take place during evenings in the week as a result of load shedding can be accommodated on Fridays and Saturdays.

After consultation with students, lecturers will decide whether the alternative timetable will apply when load shedding does indeed occur or whether the alternative timetable will be a permanent arrangement.

The alternative evening module and venue timetable are as follows:

Classes that are presented in the timeslot 18:10 to 21:00 on Thursdays are alternatively accommodated in the same venues at the same times on a Friday. Double or more periods that commence at 17:00, but continue into the period of load shedding are also included in this alternative arrangement.

It is important to note that lecturers who present double periods that start at 14:10 and continue into the period of load shedding must make ad hoc arrangements should they wish to have their periods also included in the alternative timetable.

Classes that take place in the timeslot 20:10 to 22:00 on Wednesdays are alternatively accommodated in the timeslot 08:10 to 12:00 on Saturdays, in a few cases in different venues from those scheduled initially. Double or more periods that start at 18:10, but continue into the period of load shedding are also included in this alternative arrangement.

The venue changes for Wednesday periods that are accommodated on Saturdays are as follows:

  • BLG114 Practical 1 English (A) in the Biology Building 28 from 08:10 to 11:00
     
  • STK114 Practical 1 Afrikaans (D) in West Block 201 from 09:10 to 11:00
     
  • STK114 Practical 1 English (D) in West Block 202 from 09:10 to 11:00
     
  • ALM108 Lecture 1 English (G) in FGG169 from 09:10 to 11:00
     
  • EKN314 Lecture 2 English (A) in the Rindl Hall from 09:10 to 11:00
     
  • EFA112 Lecture 2 Afrikaans (A) in FGG377 from 10:10 to 11:00
     
  • EFK112 Lecture 2 Afrikaans (A) in FGG183 from 10:10 to 11:00
     
  • DLS112 Lecture 2 English (A) in FGG184 from 10:10 to 11:00
     
  • ALC108 Lecture 2 English (E) in the South Block 1 from 10:10 to 11:00
     
  • DLS112 Lecture 2 Afrikaans (A) in the FGG377 from 11:10 to 12:00
     
  • EFA112 Lecture 2 English (A) in FGG183 from 11:10 to 12:00
     
  • EFK112 Lecture 2 English (A) in FGG184 from 11:10 to 12:00
     
  • ELF112 Lecture 2 English (A) in FGG169 from 11:10 to 12:00
     
  • EKN214 Lecture 3 English (A) in Stabilis 4 from 11:10 to 12:00

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