TuksSport hosted a send-off event for UP Olympians on Thursday, 28 July. With the start of the Olympic Games in sight, athletes and coaches gathered to celebrate the “Road to Rio” that has brought them to this point.
There are 137 Olympians that will be representing South Africa at this year’s Games, 43 of which are TuksSport athletes, coaches and managers. This is the biggest contribution in history that UP has made to the Olympics. The event began with a speech from Kobus Van der Walt, head of TuksSport, who addressed this achievement: “You have worked hard, endured challenges, made sacrifices and missed out on many aspects of life to become Olympians. Your dream has come true. We wish you the best performance of your life, and want you to know that your university is proud of you.”
While many of the athletes place the value of this event on the possibility of Olympic medals, 50 km race walker Marc Mundell shared a different perspective: “As I’ve grown older and come around to my second Olympics, I see things differently. I was the first male race walker to go to the 2012 Olympics in 52 years, and I had dream that it would never take that long again. There are three participants this year. This is testimony to what people learn here at Tuks: to help others achieve their dream by virtue of having achieved your own dream.”
Other athletes at the event included 400 m hurdles athlete Lindsey Hanekom who explained how the structure of TuksSport has enabled Olympic pursuit: “On a practical level, the HPC, the new track, the medical staff and the physiotherapists are the things that have allowed us to develop as athletes.” Mundell elaborated on the success of TuksSort and said, “You are constantly inspired by the people that surround you when training. Iron sharpens iron, and successful athletes make themselves vulnerable to that.”
TuksJudo Zack Piontek shared the importance of gaining Olympic experience and said, “Judo is a sport that is passed down from people who have experienced it. My coach went to the Olympics as an athlete and many times as a coach. Now suddenly there is the reality of me being an Olympian. I am going to compete and gain experience too, and I will come back and pass that down to others.”
Paralympic swimmer Emily Gray beamed about the opportunity to represent her country: “A few months ago the Paralympics seemed like a dream. I can’t describe the relief of knowing that I am going to Rio. This is a sport that you have to put your whole heart into, and I hope others will see me do that and be inspired to do the same.”
Van der Walt spoke about the realistic hope of UP success in Rio. He explained that there are athletes going to their first Olympics, and how the experience of even a semi-final will do wonders for the development of their future. He then highlighted the group of athletes who have built up years of experience, like LJ van Zyl, who have the potential to achieve a medal. He emphasised the high expectations of UP rowers bringing a medal home, and the ability of UP track and field athletes to surprise onlookers with what they will achieve. Van der Walt made it clear, however, that medals are not his focus: “My reward is in the fact that they have made the Olympics. I know these athletes personally, and the dreams and challenges they have faced to get here. The cherry on the top will be the medals that come back home.”
Written by: Carli-Ann Furno and Tay Lethuloe
Originally published: www.perdeby.co.za/sections/sport/5028-tukssport-sends-atheletes-to-rio-de-janeiro
