Athletics dominates 2024 Gauteng Sports Awards
In a year where South Africa returned with a total of six medals from the Paris Olympics, it is no surprise that Olympians took centre stage at the Gauteng Sports Awards on Sunday night. The nation’s flag bearer and winner of gold and silver medals Tatjana Smith was named sportswoman of the year while Mzansi's first schoolboy to ever win an Olympic medal Bayanda Walaza was named sportsman of the year. In addition to the silver medal he won as part of the relay team that earned the silver medal in the men’s 4x100m relay, the Curro Hazeldean sprinter also took the sprint double at the World Athletics Junior Championships in the Peruvian capital of Lima a month after the Olympics to announce himself as the fastest teenager on planet earth.
Walaza's victory was but one victory for a federation that outperformed all others at the 13th edition of the awards which honour athletes, administrators and federations that have done the home of champions proud. This year's Lifetime Achiever recipient for example, as selected by Gauteng MEC for Sport, Arts, Culture and Recreation, Matome Chiloane, was Peter Manero Ngobeni. He was once the fastest sprinter in South Africa, winning multiple SA championships sprint titles and was the first black sprinter to be awarded Springbok Colours in 1985.
Simoné Kruger who took golden the women's F38 Discus in Paris was named Sportswoman of the year with a disability, while here fellow thrower and para-athlete Arno Graaff won the Sportsman of the year with a disability. The award for Federation of The Year went to Athletics Gauteng North (AGN) who finished on top of the medals table at both the ASA U23, U20, U18 & U16 Championships in March as well as the Athletics South Africa (ASA) Senior Track and Field Championships in April. AGN President Hendrick Mokganyetsi attended the glitzy awards ceremony at the University of Johannesburg Kingsway Campus, where he dedicated the victory to the thousands of athletes that call the nation’s capital home.
"Let me thank God for giving me energy to run a province like AGN. This trophy goes to the athletes for their outstanding performances. This also goes to the coaches for their commitment and technical officials for their dedication and the AGN Board for their teamwork as well as the hardworking staff. Let us not forget to thank the parents all those who love AGN for their support."
Chiloane who delivered the keynote address emphasised the importance of sport in growing Gauteng’s economy saying the awards are an important part of recognising the efforts of those who are exceptionally important cogs in the provincial sports machinery that contributes to the greater South African economy.
"Our theme this year is celebrating excellence and inspiring the youth. We remain steadfast in our belief that sport contributes to radical social and economical transformation in our province. There’s ample evidence to demonstrate that sport and recreation does make a difference to the people’s lives as well as the larger communities in which they live. It has also been shown that every unit of monetary investment in sport generates multiple macroeconomic returns in terms of the clothing and textiles, Human Resources, infrastructure development, health and disease prevention as well as tourism."
Meanwhile, a total of 9 Gauteng based athletes who represented South Africa at the 2024 Olympics received special cash incentives for winning medals (at the Olympics). They include TatjanaSmith, Bayanda Walaza, Akani Simbini, Shaun Maswanganyi, Bradley Nkoana, Simoné Kruger, Pieter Du Preez, Donald Ramaphadi and Lucas Sithole. The incentives were awarded curtesy of the Gauteng Department of Sport, Arts, Culture and Recreation. Each of the 59 finalists will pocket R15 000, whilst winners will receive an additional R25 000 in prize money. The winners will automatically be entered into the national South African Sport Awards happening later this year.
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