Talented Myra Viduya has set her sights on competing at the Olympics after collecting an impressive 11 medals at the South African Level Two Swimming Gala.
The three-day swim meet took place in Oudtshoorn from April 7 to 9 and the dynamic 10-year-old returned with five golds, five silvers and one bronze medal.
Viduya, who is in Grade 5 at Herbert Hurd Primary School, was understandably pleased with her achievement.
“I am very happy that I came back with 11 medals from Oudtshoorn. My future goal is to go to the Olympics,” she said.
“I train five times a week and enjoy swimming, because you can do different strokes – I love butterfly, because I am good at it.”
To participate in the gala, Viduya needed to swim qualifying times.
She took part in competitions including the Eastern Province Championship where she performed excellently.
She also competed in regional competitions in the province.
Coach David Glover, who has been mentoring Viduya for 18 months, said he had rarely seen a swimmer excel in the different strokes.
“In my 13 years as a swimming coach, I have seen a few other talented swimmers, but she is something special,” he said.
“You don’t often get a swimmer who is good at all the strokes and doesn’t have a weak stroke.
“She is talented in all the strokes. I think often with a 10-year-old you find them to be erratic in their performances but I find for her age she is mature.
“She handles the pressure and race stress very well.
“When they are 10 years old they can’t go to any competition higher than level two.
“She was swimming against the best 10-year-olds in the Eastern and Western Cape.
“Myra is a very hard worker for a 10-year-old.
“She participated in every single event at the competition, except for one.
“She was a busy girl, but she did incredibly well.”
Glover said he emphasised the fact that young swimmers must enjoy themselves.
“When they are young, enjoyment is the main thing,” he said.
“Myra really enjoys her swimming, but I try not to push her too hard at such a young age.
“To be honest, though, she really likes to push herself, but I try to hold her back a little while still allowing her to go her hardest at training.
“I want her to still be swimming at 18, so I try to keep the enjoyment going and let her do races that she enjoys.
“She is now aiming to go to the biggest event, the SA Junior National, but you are only allowed to go there when you are 12.
“She will have a break and then we will start training hard for the next gala, which is the PEA Winter Gala at the end of June.”