Team SA all set for African Games

The cream of the South African sporting crop will rise to the top when more than 150 athletes compete across various sporting codes at the African Games  in Morocco next month. 

With a total of 26 sporting codes to be contested at the Games, Team South Africa have named a star-studded lineup which includes a host of sporting men and women to compete across 11 of the prescribed events at the Games. 

The squad, which saw 153 athletes and officials selected for the trip, will also have a considerable taste of Eastern Cape flavour travelling to the African showpiece set to get underway from August 16. 

Swim twins Alard and Alaric Basson, field athlete Ischke Senekal as well as Judo star Siyabulela Mabulu will be among the names who will fly the Eastern Cape flag for Team SA.  

In addition, a number of athletes, who are originally from the province, but no longer reside here, were also included in the squad. 

Among these include Olympic swimmer and US-based Christopher Reid, in addition to Commonwealth Games bronze medallist Mona Pretorius, now based in Romania, who will take to the weightlifting platform. 

Another former EC swimmer, Kaylene Corbett, who is now in Gauteng, where she swims alongside double Commonwealth Games champion Tatjana Schoenmaker at Tuks, also cracked the nod. Port Elizabeth Amateur Swimming Academy  head Mark Edge, earned a spot on the swim team coaching staff. 

At the former games in Congo Brazzaville, 2015, Team SA performed exceptionally well and won a total of 122 medals, 41 gold, 41 silver and 40 bronze placing third on the medal table. 

South African Sports Confederation and Olympic  Committee president Gideon Sam said the African Games was a very important competition on the calendar, calling it “the highest pinnacle of competition on the continent".

“As these Games come only a year before the Olympics, it is a benchmark for our athletes on their road to the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games,” Sam said. 

Sam further explained that despite the leaner looking team selected for the two-week-long competition. 

“Previously we have sent a big team of almost 300 athletes to these Games, but as highlighted before, this year it will be impossible to send a team of 300 people due to financial constraints. 

“However, though the team is lean, it is a strong team of experienced athletes and we mostly included the athletes who will use the games as a qualifier for the Olympic Games,” he said. 

Sam reiterated the seriousness of the competition and urged all athletes to give their all at the Games, not only for themselves but for the entire nation, as this competition will only serve as a precursor of athletes can expect when the Olympics comes around next year, Sam concluded. 

A full squad list can be found on the SASCOC website, which outlines all selected athletes in their various codes.