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28 March 2022 | Story Jóhann Thormählen | Photo Supplied
Rassie Erasmus en Jacques Nienaber
A few Kovsies were winners at the South African Sports Awards. Rassie Erasmus (Coach of the Year) were among the current and former Kovsies honoured. Pictured here with Jacques Nienaber, Springbok Head Coach.
The influence of the University of the Free State (UFS) on the South African sporting landscape and the world stage is outstanding.

DB Prinsloo, Director of KovsieSport, says this was emphasised when a few Kovsies were among the winners at the South African Sports Awards held on 12 March 2022.

According to him, this is testament to the contribution that the university makes on a daily basis in the careers of sportsmen and -women.

The UFS shared in the spoils at the 15th version of the awards in Durban as former Shimla Rassie Erasmus was named Coach of the Year, while Miné de Klerk was the Newcomer of the Year. The young athlete, who is studying in America, is a member of the Kovsie Athletics Club.

The UFS also had a hand in the Team of the Year award, which went to the Springboks. Many former Kovsies are involved with the team.

Hard work pays off

“We are very proud of administrators, sportsmen and -women who excel in this way,” says Prinsloo.

“It is a reward to the individuals and teams for their infinite determination and focused hard work.”

He says it shows the university’s impact to the rest of the country. “The hours, days, months, and years of hard work have paid off.”

Erasmus is South Africa’s Director of Rugby and was the 45th Springbok produced by the UFS. He helped the Boks achieve success in 2021, including a series victory over the British and Irish Lions.

De Klerk won gold (shot put) and silver (discus) medals at the World Athletics U20 Championships last year.

Erasmus, Jacques Nienaber (Head Coach), and Daan Human (Scrum Coach) are all former Kovsies and part of the Springbok management, while the former Shimla, Ox Nché, plays for South Africa.

Attracting prospective students

Another Kovsie, Louzanne Coetzee (T11), was nominated for a SA Sports Award. 

The UFS Akasia Residence Head won silver (T11; 1 500 m) and bronze (T12; marathon) medals at the Paralympics.
She and her guides, Estean Badenhorst and Claus Kempen, were nominated for Sportswoman of the Year with a Disability. The sprinter Anruné Weyers (T47) took the honours.

Prinsloo says these achievements have an impact on prospective students. 

“Through this, they are made aware of the contribution that the UFS and KovsieSport make, and its attitude towards sport and the promotion thereof.”
Mine de Klerk

(Miné de Klerk was named Newcomer of the Year at 2022 SA Sports Awards. Photo: Dan Vernon (World Athletics) 

News Archive

Three more Kovsie staff members involved in Olympic Games
2012-05-30

 

Dr Derik Coetzee
Photo: Supplied
30 May 2012

The South African men’s hockey team will practice on our Bloemfontein Campus from 28 May to 8 June 2012, and the team count on the assistance of three Kovsies to prepare them for the Olympic Games taking place in London later this year.  

Dr Derik Coetzee, senior lecturer in the Department of Exercise and Sport Science and Head of our High Performance Centre, has been appointed conditioning coach of the team. He will be assisted by Colleen Jones and Riaan Schoeman, also from this department.

The UFS team and Mr Gregg Clark, the team’s coach, will work out a periodisation programme for the team, which will continue until the hockey finals at the Olympic Games. The programme includes the correct exercises, volume, intensity and number of exercise sessions per week.

This is not the first time that Dr Coetzee has assisted sports teams to prepare for important events. In 2007, he was the conditioning coach of the Springbok rugby team that won the World Cup in France. He was also the conditioning coach of the under-21 Springbok team in 2002 that won the Junior World Cup Tournament. 

Dr Coetzee says it is a challenge to ensure that the team performs well at the Olympic Games. “The joy on the faces of the coach and players when they qualified in Japan cannot be described because many people thought they would not qualify.”

With the addition of Dr Coetzee, Ms Jones and Mr Schoeman, a total of six staff members from the UFS will be involved with the Olympic Games and the Paralympic Games. The other three are:

  • Dr Louis Holtzhausen, Head of the university’s Department of Sports and Exercise Medicine, has been selected as team doctor for the more than 300 athletes that will represent South Africa at this year’s Olympic Games (in London).
  • Ms Ebeth Grobbelaar, Assistant Director of the South African Testing Laboratory for Prohibited Substances at the UFS, was invited to be involved in the Drugs Control Centre in the unit against prohibited substances which will test sportsmen and -women during the games.
  • Ms Hetsie Veitch, Head of the Unit for Students with Disabilities, has been invited to be a member of the Classification Panel at the final USA Paralympic athletics trials.

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