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15 November 2022
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Story Valentino Ndaba
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Photo Sonia Small
Walk of honour for December graduates
The big day has finally arrived! The December graduation ceremonies will be in full swing on 9 and 12 December. UFS Graduates will do the walk of honour across the stage in the Callie Human Centre on the Bloemfontein Campus.
All the ceremonies will be broadcast on the official
UFS YouTube channel. Join the ultimate launch of the festive season as we celebrate the graduates on:
This marks the second in-person graduations following the COVID-19 pandemic's virtual ceremonies.
Graduates are encouraged to share inspiring stories about their unique academic journey or memories on:
socialmedia@ufs.ac.za or news@ufs.ac.za
On the big day, don’t forget to tag us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, using the official hashtag #UFSGraduation2022
For more information visit the Graduation webpage
The following qualifications will be conferred
Date | Time | Faculties: All Qualifications |
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Friday 9 December 2022 | 09:00 | Education Economic and Management Sciences Law |
| 14:30 | Natural and Agricultural Sciences The Humanities Theology and Religion |
Monday 12 December 2022 | 09:00 | Health Sciences |
NBC tells Wayde’s story
2015-11-02
 The film crew from NBC Olympics filming Wayde van Niekerk (centre, in grey clothes) during a practice session at Pellies Park on the Bloemfontein Campus of the UFS. On the left is Ans Botha, Van Niekerk’s coach. Photo: Charl Devenish |
The Kovsie star Wayde van Niekerk stands an excellent chance of shining at the 2016 Olympics and has a remarkable story behind his success.
This is why NBC Olympics, a division of the American broadcasting network NBC, selected the athlete from the University of the Free State (UFS) to do a special insert for the Olympics in Rio de Janeiro.
A film crew from NBC visited the City of Roses and the Bloemfontein Campus of the UFS on Monday 26 and Tuesday 27 October 2015 to film the insert. The feature will be screened on NBC Olympics’ platforms during and leading up to the Olympics next year.
One of four stars
Van Niekerk was one of four athletes used by the crew to film inserts on. The others were the South African swimmer Chad le Clos, the Kenyan 800 m athlete David Rudisha, and Ethiopian middle- and long-distance athlete Genzebe Dibaba.
The crew interviewed Van Niekerk and his coach Ans Botha, and also paid a visit to Pellies Park during one of his training sessions.
According to Tom Davidson, feature producer at NBC Olympics, the piece about Van Niekerk will be about three minutes long.
“We do a pretty good job of picking good stories, but it is up to the athletes to get there,” Davidson said.
“We think Wayde has a good shot at being in the finals of the 400 m at the Olympics.”
Van Niekerk won a gold medal in a time of 43.48 s at the World Championships in Beijing during August 2015 and set a new South African record for a third time and a new African record for a second time this year in the process.
Beijing success propels Wayde onto NBC radar
“Wayde’s performance in Beijing certainly propelled him onto our radar,” said Davidson.
“He beat former World and Olympic champions like Kirani James and LaShawn Merritt.”
He feels that Van Niekerk is also very young and still at university.
And Botha makes his story even more interesting.
“It is not every day that you see a 74-year old great-grandmother coaching a world champion.”