President praises Team SA on Commonwealth Games success

President Cyril Ramaphosa has praised Team South Africa’s achievements at the 2018 Commonwealth Games on the Gold Coast of Australia.

The team returned to South Africa after a fierce competition which saw them winning 37 medals in total: 13 gold, 11 silver and 13 bronze across a broad range of sporting codes.

“We are  immensely proud of our team for this outstanding performance that has placed the spotlight not just on our sporting prowess, but also on how our society is creating opportunities for all South Africans to realise their human potential,” said President Ramaphosa.
 

President Ramaphosa is attending the Common Wealth Heads of Government meeting in London this week. He will personally meet and congratulate the athletes when he returns.

Team South Africa earned 6^th place in the competition’s medals tally.

Swimmers Tatjana Schoenmaker, Chad le Clos and Cameron van der Burgh won a combined 6 gold medals; sprinter Akani Simbine won the country’s first gold medal in the 100 metres sprint, and runner Caster Semenya won gold in the 800 and 1 500 metre races.

Martin Erasmus won South Africa’s first Commonwealth wrestling gold medal in 60 years.

Simbine’s win in the 100m race was made even more momentous with fellow sprinter, Henricho Bruintjies, coming up behind him to take silver ahead of former world champion Yohan Blake.

Ramaphosa stressed the important role sports plays in building a healthy and cohesive society.

“I wish to encourage all South Africans to support our athletes and the governing structures to ensure even greater performance moving forward,” he said.