The thoughts of the women among South Africa’s Olympic team were with their sisters who celebrated Women’s Day back home, but none in the team considered herself more fortunate than hockey-player Pholo Tsoanelo.
Pholo’s name means ”fortunate one” and the Gauteng player considers herself extremely lucky to be in Athens for her first Olympics.
”It’s just very sad that my being here had to be at the misfortune of Bronwyn [Ross],” said the likeable player whose job it is to link with one of the world’s top strikers, Pietie Coetzee.
Tsoanelo, a non-travelling reserve who was called in the day before departure for an injured Ross, impressed in her Olympic debut, a friendly 3-0 victory against New Zealand last Friday, and she will turn out again in the Olympic warm up against Spain on Tuesday evening.
”Last Tuesday was a weird day for me,” said Tsoanelo. ”I felt devastated for Bronwyn, but obviously very excited to be coming to Athens. The incredible thing is how the girls made me feel at home in the team.
”I was desperate to get back into a fast pace in my game and against New Zealand. I actually played much better than I expected. Being here is an amazing experience. Today is a very special one for me.”
Women’s hockey captain Susan Webber said she expected her team to lift a level against Spain.
”We mustn’t read too much into beating New Zealand 3-0 in a friendly,” she said. ”It was good experience to play on the main pitch and we have a few problems to sort out.”
A vital area of concern is the nine short corners they conceded against New Zealand. ”That’s something we have really worked on since then,” she said.
There has been much to celebrate in the SA camp in the run-up to the competition before the opening ceremony on Friday night.
On Sunday, taekwondo-ka Duncan Mahlangu and badminton player Chris Dednam both turned 21 and were given a joint birthday party which was attended by all the South Africans in the Olympic Village.
”Special cakes were baked with the names of the two athletes on them, and soft drinks were served to a festive group of well wishers,” said the team’s chef de mission Hajera Kajee.
Kajee had a message for South Africans back home. ”As our country is celebrating Women’s Day, we would like to wish all our women athletes in Athens well over this significant day in our history.
”The women in our team are symbols of hope and achievement… It is an achievement because the struggle of women in South Africa is a long, difficult and often a lonely one. We hope that all our dreams are realised when they compete in the world’s greatest sporting arena.”
Human dynamics and the distance from home will always generate emotional highs and lows.
And right now Llewellyn Herbert, the bronze medal winner at the Sydney Olympics in 2000, is struggling to lift his emotions after racing with a heavy heart after his girlfriend broke up with him on the phone before he competed in the 400m hurdles in Zurich last Friday night.
Herbert replied by SMS to a query as to his poor performance: ”I feel terrible. Girlfriend broke up with me tonight.”
There is also concern for the welfare of 400m relay runner Hendrick Mokganyetsi who was taking it easy on Monday after collapsing during training on Saturday.
He apparently suffered chest pains and was kept in hospital for monitoring after undergoing a series of medical tests.
”Hendrick is still under observation at the hospital and team doctor Wayne Derman is with him right now and we expect an update for him later,” said Kajee.
Tall 100m sprinter Geraldine Pillay and bubbly fencer Kelly Wilson are two athletes in particular who keep morale high with smiles and humour.
”This is a stunning experience,” said Pillay. ”The village is really filling up now, the vibe is unbelievable and there are athletes all round who are so big and so well defined they take one’s breath away.”
”I’m not here to autograph hunt,” quipped Wilson. ”But I’ll have to get a few soccer autographs for my boyfriend back home or he’ll never talk to me again.”
World high jump champion Hestrie Cloete, who cleared her season’s best height with a winning 2,04m at Zurich, did not arrive with the rest of the South African athletes over the weekend as reported, but flies into the Olympic city on Thursday.
Estie Wittstock and Marcus la Grange, both 400m sprinters, left on Monday to race in an IAAF meeting in Slovenia. – Sapa