Western Province fencer Wanda Matshaya will be the official flag bearer for the South African team at the opening ceremony of the inaugural Youth Olympics in Singapore.
Sixteen-year-old Matshaya will be at the forefront of Team SA at the opening ceremony on Saturday, 14 August as the world celebrates the first staging of the event.
Matshaya is a Grade 11 student at Christel House in Ottery, Cape Town.
She has only been taking part in fencing for the last four years, during which she has made giant strides.
During this period, she has improved continuously and became as strong, and in many cases stronger, as her rivals.
Being at the southern tip of the continent it’s difficult for South Africans to qualify for events like these as the majority of international events are far away and also extremely expensive, putting her at a distinct disadvantage.
However she was fortunate to attend the Junior World Championships in Baku in Azerbaijan.
The championships provided a moving moment when she realised that she stood a chance of qualifying for the Junior Olympics and she shed tears of joy on that achievement.
South Africa are represented by a squad of 63 athletes in Singapore and the Youth Olympics will wrap up on 26 August 2010.
posted by Christel House Blog @
1:55 PM
Western Province fencer Wanda Matshaya will be the official flag bearer for the South African team at the opening ceremony of the inaugural Youth Olympics in Singapore.
