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24 September 2024 | Story Aimée Barlow | Photo Supplied
Louzanne Coetzee - 2024
Louzanne Coetzee, who made history by clinching South Africa’s second medal at the Paralympics, earning a bronze in the T11 1 500 m women’s final with a personal best time, received a warm reception when she recently returned home.

The celebrated Paralympic bronze medallist Louzanne Coetzee returned home to a warm welcome at the Bram Fischer International Airport on 10 September 2024.

Family, friends, colleagues, Arista students, and media gathered to celebrate her remarkable achievement and show their support.

Coetzee – KovsieSport Coordinator of Parasport at the University of the Free State (UFS) – made history by clinching South Africa’s second medal at the Paralympics, earning a bronze in the T11 1 500 m women’s final with a personal best time. Her dedication and hard work have not only brought her personal glory but have also inspired many in her community.

Among those present to welcome her was Jerry Laka, Director of KovsieSport, who expressed his pride in Coetzee’s accomplishments.

"We as KovsieSport are so proud of our colleague Coetzee. It is amazing to see a product of KovsieSport achieving greatness on the world stage. She is truly an inspiration to us all," said Laka.

“I am so glad to be back, and to have Laka and my colleagues here. It means the world to me. Having Laka here shows his commitment to my career and ParaSport and his staff in general,” shared Coetzee, her gratitude evident.

She further expressed her appreciation for the support she received, stating, “I don’t have the words to describe how thankful I am for the support from the UFS community.”

Coetzee’s return is a proud moment for South Africa and the University of the Free State (UFS) community. Welcome home, Louzanne! Your achievements have made us all proud!

News Archive

Kovsies play hockey across the country
2010-03-01

Pictured: Cherie Smith
Photo: Hannes Pieterse

The men’s and women’s hockey teams of the University of the Free State (UFS) recently played against some of the best university hockey teams in the country. The Kovsies (first team) and Reds (second team) played impressively against Tukkies, Pukke and the University of Johannesburg’s (UJ) hockey teams.

“Unfortunately the Kovsie teams couldn’t beat Tukkies. The women lost 2-3 and then the men also lost 1-3,” says Frans van der Watt, assistant director and hockey coach at Kovsiesport.


After this, the UFS stood their ground against Pukke. Kovsies’ women’s team played to a draw with 2 each. The men’s team triumphed 2-1.

Next up was UJ and this time Kovsies really did us proud. Both the Kovsies and the Reds’ great games led to triumphs. The Reds won with an impressive score of 3-0 and the Kovsies won 2-0 against UJ’s best.

For the men’s team the challenge was a somewhat bigger. “The Reds played to a draw at 2-2 and the Kovsies lost 1-4 against an incredibly strong team of UJ,” says Van der Watt.

Kovsies’ men’s and women’s teams are currently ranked ninth and eighth on the list of the best university teams. The women’s teams in particular are making their mark with their victory over UJ and their impressive game against Pukke.
- Lize du Plessis

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