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25 February 2022 | Story Anthony Mthembu | Photo Victor Ramphore Mahlohla (baddapictures)
Inaugural Dreamwalk 2022
The inaugural dream walk put students in high spirits for the rest of the year, as they were able to express and celebrate their dreams and aspirations.

The inaugural dream walk at the University of the Free State took place on the Bloemfontein Campus on 19 February 2022. The dream walk, also referred to as ‘Leeto la ditoro’, will become an annual event where first-year students come together to express and celebrate their dreams and aspirations. 

The event was well attended by Bloemfontein Campus first-year students, who believe that the event is a great way to set the tone for the rest of the year. The students first gathered at a station on campus, where they were issued with a faculty T-shirt, key chain, a dream card, and a mask. The official walk then began from the Visitor Centre Gate on the northwest side of the Bloemfontein Campus to the Main Building, where members of the senior leadership are based.
During the walk, first-year students had to write down their dreams and aspirations on the dream card, which they ultimately placed in a box at the Main Building. “I found it amazing to be able to put my dreams on paper; it makes them more realistic,” highlighted Marise Prinsloo, a first-year student from the Outeniqua residence. Although some of the aspirations were too personal for some first-year students to speak about, others’ aspirations varied from academic success, spiritual wellness, and mental and physical health. In fact, Malcolm Willemse, who is also a first-year student from Outeniqua, hopes to secure a number of leadership positions. “I have dreams of being in the first-year committee and of being in the sub-committees, and I managed to write these down,” he shared. 

In addition, the atmosphere at the event was vibrant, as the students were excited to engage with one another. “It was amazing to walk with other residences such as Villa Bravado, Abraham Fischer, and Conlaurês, as they have great spirit,’’ expressed Willemse. The walk included songs from the various residences, and the first-year students were dancing and singing along. However, the fun did not end there. Once the students arrived at the Main Building, they were treated to a DJ who had them dancing and singing even more.

As the dream walk event will also take place on the Qwaqwa and South Campuses, the students on these campuses can expect to take part in a lot of singing, dancing, and other cultural activities. Precious Modiba, who is also a first-year student, argues that besides having a good time, one of the best things about the dream walk is the friends that one gets to make.

News Archive

Sarah, our own champion
2008-11-05

 
Sarah Shannon at the Paralympic Games in Beijing

 

Sarah Shannon, a second-year student in the Postgraduate Certificate in Education, has been involved in disability sport on national level for the past 12 years. Sarah has cerebral palsy.

In 1996 she participated at the South African National Championships for the physically disabled for the first time, entering for several sporting codes and winning five gold medals. In swimming she participates in the S3 class together with other swimmers that have comparable abilities to hers.

In 1997 she decided to focus on swimming competitively. She participated in her first national championships for swimming that year. After that (1998) she represented South Africa on international level at the International Paralympic Committee’s (IPC) Swimming World Championships in New Zealand where she ended 4th in the 50m backstroke and 7th in both the 50m and 100m freestyle in her class.

In 1999 she represented South Africa in Johannesburg at the 7th All Africa Games and won a silver medal for the 50m freestyle and a bronze medal for the 100m freestyle.

In 2000 she was part of the South African team at the Sydney Paralympic Games where she reached the finals and finished 7th in the 50m backstroke and 8th in the 50m freestyle. Northern-KwaZulu-Natal also awarded her the Junior Sportswoman of the Year award in 2001. In 2002 she participated at the South African Senior National swimming championships for KwaZulu-Natal in the multi-disability category.

In 2005 she completed the Midmar Mile. She also represented South Africa at the world championships for athletes with cerebral palsy in Boston in the United States of America. She won two gold medals for respectively the 50m freestyle and the 50m backstroke and two silver medals in the 100m and 200m freestyle. She was also nominated to represent South Africa as athlete’s representative on the world committee of CPISRA (Cerebral Palsy International Sports and Recreation Association). In this year Sarah also received the KwaZulu-Natal Premier’s Sportswoman with a disability award of the year.

In 2006 she qualified for the IPC world championships but could not attend.

In 2007 she represented South Africa once more at the Visa Paralympic World Cup in Manchester in the United Kingdom where she broke the South African record in the 50m backstroke, finishing 7th in the 50m freestyle and 6th in the 50m backstroke.

She was also part of the very successful Team South Africa to the Paralympic Games in Beijing. She reached the finals in both the 50m backstroke and 50m freestyle. She finished 7th in the 50m freestyle and 6th in the 50m backstroke in personal best times for both events. She has been participating in the able bodied South African National Swimming Championships since 2002. She is currently ranked 2nd in the world for short course items and 11th for the long course items. She is truly our best swimmer in the S3 class.
 

 

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