Pretoria - The University of Pretoria rower Thabelo Masutha is looking for more glory after making local rowing history at the weekend.
Masutha, 19, won the Silver Single Sculls race during the Buffalo Regatta in East London to become the youngest person to do so. He is also the first black rower to lift the coveted trophy.
Masutha will compete at the Senior World Championships in Austria later this year with the aim of qualifying in the single sculls for next year’s Olympic Games in Tokyo.
Masutha admits he is in for a tough challenge as his best time is about 30 seconds slower than the world's best.
However, rowing is not really about times. It is about guts and hunger, which Masutha has in abundance.
He proved it last year when he competed for the first time at the World Senior Championships. He qualified for the quarter-finals, beating an Olympic bronze medallist in the repêchage. He was the youngest competing in the single sculls.
Victory at the Buffalo Regatta is something every local rower who is serious about the sport wants to tick off at least once.
The reason is that it is the oldest regatta in South Africa with the first edition having taken place in 1879.
It is not the first time Masutha has pushed the boundaries of South African rowing. In 2017 he won a bronze medal in the single sculls during the World Junior Championships, becoming the first black rower to do so.
Another first for South African black rowing was in 2012 when Sizwe Ndlovu was part of the “Awesome Foursome” that won gold at the Olympic Games in London.
If Masutha has his way, it won't be the last time a black rower triumphs at the Games. African News Agency (ANA)