Pretoria - The cream of South Africa’s artistic gymnasts will compete against the best on the continent for honours at the 17th African Artistic Gymnastics Championships at the Heartfelt Arena in Tshwane next week.
The women’s team will be spearheaded by Olympic gymnasts Caitlin Rooskrantz and Naveen Daries.
The team will be marshalled by top coaches Ilse Pelser and Leeland Christian, who oversee gymnasts at the Johannesburg Gymnastics Club.
The men’s team comprises three gymnasts, Muhammed Khalid Mia, Aidan Maguire and Ruan Lange, who will be accompanied by coaches Kevin Basson (Visions Gymnastics Club) and Gerrard Ferreira (Centurion).
The SA women’s team achieved unprecedented success at last year’s Commonwealth Games in Birmingham in England, finishing fourth overall, their best finish at the event.
Daries placed sixth in the all-around competition, the best finish achieved by an SA gymnast. Rooskrantz secured a bronze in the uneven bars in the individual events competition.
Rooskrantz, not only the national champion but also the defending African champion, having annexed the title in Egypt last year, became the first SA woman to achieve this feat since 2014 and in foreign conditions.
“Our team this year is similar to last year’s, so we’d like to use these championships to build on what we’ve achieved in the past. Victory for our team will secure direct qualification for World Championships, which is well within our capabilities, especially on home soil,” Rooskrantz said.
She added that she would like to have a clean competition and try to defend her all-around title, as well as her uneven bars title that she’s held for a few years.
“The preparation is going well and we’re all excited to compete. Our two head coaches have given us all the support and helped us to get to where we are.”
The team has been able to practise together daily and build their team morale. “It’s the first time since 2014 that the championships are back in South Africa, so we’re hoping for a successful event,” she said.
Among the men, Maguire and Mia both performed well in Egypt last year, and while they weren’t able to secure either of the two places reserved for African gymnasts at the Olympic Games, they represented the country with pride, finishing sixth and eighth.
“All three of the team members have been training together, which helps to boost our team spirit and performance. We have also been competing together for about eight years, so we’ve come a long way in one another’s company,” Maguire, whose sister Angela was previously a member of the national team, said.
He added that since they were a small team, they needed to have good competition to help the team score.
“If we manage this, we can achieve a podium finish and go to the World Championships as a team if we finish first,” said Maguire.
According to him Egypt was their toughest competition, but they were also wary of Algeria and Morocco.
Maguire said in spite of the North African teams threat, the SA team was hoping to use its home advantage.
Pretoria News