Durban - Identical twins, Jade and Amber Naidoo, are over the moon after they each attained 8 distinctions in the National Senior Certificate examination.
The siblings and their parents - Vincent , 46, and Yvette, 40, who own East Coast Panel Beaters - anxiously drove around their neighbourhood in Sherwood on Thursday evening, hoping to purchase a copy of a newspaper with the results.
Jade said: “At around 5am on Friday, my dad managed to get a copy of the paper from our local garage and we were ecstatic when we saw eight distinctions against our examination numbers."
The 18-year-olds of Eden College have attributed their success to one other.
“My sister helped me through the year. She motivated me when I felt under pressure. I don’t know what I would have done without her,” added Jade.
Sharing similar sentiments, Amber said they had started working on past year examination papers, sometimes from as early as 4am.
“When Jade did not understand something, I helped her and she did the same for me. There was no competition or sibling rivalry, as we both wanted to excel.”
However, things were not always smooth sailing.
“Our dog of 10 years, Custard, died in August from a brain tumour. It was just before trials and we were devastated. I remember feeling depressed,” said Amber.
With the support and encouragement of their parents, the sisters managed to get back on track.
Yvette Naidoo said: “We are so proud of Jade and Amber, who have excelled from Grade R. They never let me or their dad down. In fact, their success motivated us to strive to do better in our own lives.”
Both Jade and Amber have been provisionally accepted to study medicine at the Nelson R Mandela School of Medicine. Amber is also opting for a career in aviation.