TSHWANTSHO MEDIA NEWSLETTER
- Tumelo Mabua
- Aug 7, 2024
- 3 min read
Updated: Aug 8, 2024
Dumelang Bagolo!
Writing the first piece of our monthly newsletter is somewhat a dream coming true. I always thought I’d write a blog but have been so unfocused to do it. Well, here we are, finally. This being the first piece, it will inevitably set the tone for the upcoming editions and form the baseline for future pieces. We are generally all about light heartedness, but we will use all at our disposal to advocate for good causes, and champion social issues related to athletics in general.
The question is, where do I start with so much happening? We have a new Minister of Sports, who is in the media for good reasons, just as he is for controversial ones. Love him or hate him, you can’t ignore him. We are in the middle of the Paris Olympics, and exactly 2 months since the Comrades marathon took place. Of course, Gerda broke another record, as usual and in about a day she will be in her second Olympics marathon in as many editions. Piet Wiersma won the men’s race, after coming second to Tete Dijana in the previous instalment, with Dan Mashaillwe following him in second position.
Photos: Tshwantsho Photography
In the 10km, Glenrose Xaba broke the long-standing national record long held by Elana Meyer in an emotional finish at the ABSA series Durban, where Elroy Gelant won the men’s edition of the race ahead of multiple winner Mulaudzi. It was this past weekend too, that Glenrose continued her fine form wining the Tshwane Women’s Challenge Tshwane ahead of Ethiopian Tadu Nare, who has been dominant in the competition in recent years. I have even jokingly implied that the competition must just be named after her.
The Olympics opening was met with mixed feelings, with as many loving the ceremony, and just as many expressing contrary opinions. This after we attended the CGA sendoff ceremony, and rubbing shoulders with some of the Team SA members, having narrowly missed the party at SACOC the night prior.
Clearly, we need to expand our network. We saw many withdrawals and shuffling across multiple teams, and our own team was not spared, as Luxolo Adams protested his exclusion from the bus to Paris.
Our start to the Olympics was excellent with a Bronze from the Blitz Bokke, followed by Tatiana Smith, formerly Schoenmaker. She would proceed to snatch another silver, becoming our most decorated Olympian and taking some of our precious metals back home. The mountain biking bronze means Team SA medal tally is at 4, with the track and field hopefuls falling short of Glory.
Adrian Wildschutte closed the top 10 with yet another national record, breaking his own national record set earlier in the year, in the start studded 1000m lineup. Awe Boeta!! Prudence Sekgodiso fought the battle of her life, while Akani Simbine fell short, losing to Noah Lyles, getting the national record in the process. We wait in anticipation for the relays, with Richardson hitting a blow at the 4 x 100m chances with a forced withdrawal. We remain hopeful for future games.
In a lessor publicised milestone, Tshwantsho was the main photographer at the Soweto Cabal, and we delivered a standing ovation performance in the historic township. This is tipping point in our endeavours, and will definitely have a domino effect. We also featured at the Spar Women’s Challenge for the second year running.
Our contacts are available for more of such events, and for advertising your athletics events on our site. Thanks for the love thus far, let’s create content together bagolo.
As of the closing of this article, the Olympics games are still on, and we will be departing from thence in our next edition.
Till next time, stay active.
Great work malome. Your work is stunning and the level of commitment is amazing. We wish Tshwantsho Media Great success.