All eyes will be on South Africa’s top swimmer, Tatjana Smith as she stands to win her first gold medal in the women’s 100-metre breaststroke final at the Paris Olympics in France.
Smith advanced to the finals after dominating the semis on Sunday, finishing at a time of 1:05:00 as the fastest qualifier.
The breaststroke champ says this is her best performance since the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, where she won a gold medal in the 200-metre race.
“It’s my fastest time since Tokyo. I think most of all I’m really enjoying every race and I’m much happier, so it doesn’t matter what the times are.
I think just me personally experiencing these races and just being happy is exactly what I want to be at this time,” Smith commented on her performance.
Meanwhile, her male counterpart Pieter Coetzee will also compete in the finals after setting a new African record for the men’s 100-metre backstroke, finishing 52.63.
There is growing optimism that South Africa will bag more medals in this year’s Olympics, especially after the men’s rugby Sevens secured a bronze medal in the first week of the games.
This despite some setbacks like SA Gymnast Caitlin Rooskrantz being forced to withdraw from the competition, after sustaining an injury on her right foot during Sunday’s practice session.
Mzansi continues to send tributes and rally behind the 138 athletes representing the country in the various sporting codes.
