By Jenny Bernstein
Swimming South Africa (SSA) has introduced incentives for swimmers and their South African-based coaches for achievements at international level.
These incentives have been introduced retroactively to the South African athletes who excelled at the recent World Championships in Montreal, Canada.
Swimmers will receive R10 000 for a gold medal, R7 000 for silver, R5 000 for bronze and R1 500 for reaching a final. An added bonus of R10 000 will be paid for achieving a world record. Each coach who travelled to Montreal will receive R2 000 for their efforts and a matching incentive for their protege's achievements.
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| 'Our target is to be the third largest swimming nation' |
"These incentives are here to stay," said Alan Fritz, an executive member of SSA. "We are a professional organisation and want to produce good results. Our target is to be the third largest swimming nation by the time we reach Beijing."
South Africa is currently lying eighth on the Fina world rankings, a remarkable improvement given the fact that the country was in 12th position 18 months ago.
Unfortunately, these incentives will not apply to junior swimming owing to budget constraints.
Roland Schoeman, the highest achiever at the Montreal championships, will receive a total of R47 000 for his two gold medals, two world records and one silver medal. His compatriot Ryk Neethling will receive R11 500 for his two bronze medals and his appearance in a third final.
Up-and-coming junior swimmer Suzaan van Biljon, 17, qualified for two finals and will be rewarded with R3 000. Her Russian coach, Igor Omeltchenko, now based in South Africa, has been with Van Biljon since January and is proud of her achievements.
| 'Well done to SSA on taking this positive step' |
Omeltchenko, who has experience of coaching abroad, admitted the incentives were a surprise, but added they were most welcome. "Incentives are paid to swimming coaches in Russia and Europe and it's good for the coaches in South Africa to finally get some recognition. It is a very positive move and a good sign for the rest of the coaches," he said.
Dean Price, coach of Neethling, was most appreciative of his reward and said it would make a huge difference. He can spend up to six hours a day, one-on-one with Neethling, and can be on call 24 hours a day, seven days a week. He said the financial incentive and the recognition made a big difference.
"People don't realise what it takes to produce someone like Ryk. Well done to SSA on taking this positive step," said Price. - Sapa
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