Team SA is being represented by a strong squad at the Rhine-Ruhr FISU World University Games, which have got under way in Germany, where there are more than 150 countries competing across 17 sports.
Five cities in the Rhine-Ruhr region – Bochum, Duisburg, Essen, Hagen and Mülheim an der Ruhr – as well as capital Berlin will host the competitions.
The Games run until 25th July and host over 8,500 student athletes. Team SA is competing in eight codes: Athletics, Rowing, Swimming, Diving, Archery, Fencing, Tennis, and 3×3 Basketball.
Three high-profile Olympians from Paris 2024 are in the squad of 110 athletes – Bayanda Walaza (athletics), Pieter Coetze (swimming) and Harry Saner (fencing).
The Team SA delegation head, Carole Adams, told news agency Reuters: “Team South Africa has several strong contenders across multiple sports who are expected to challenge for medals, these will especially come from swimming and athletics with other hopefuls in rowing, fencing and archery.
“There are many other international events taking place at the same time such as World Aquatics Championships which has affected our swimming and diving team.
“This also has an impact of preparation of athletes so we are cautious about the number of medals we hope to achieve but at the end of the day if we can match or exceed our medal tally of 20 medals from Chengdu, we shall be very excited and proud of the student’s achievements.
“However, I think it’s important to note that we also encourage students to experience vast majority of cultures and network with fellow students from around the world and this will develop the student-athletes holistically and come home better citizens.”
