Gymnastics South Africa managed to produce numerous outstanding performances in 2022

14 December 2022.

Amid returning to some form of normality in 2022, Gymnastics South Africa managed to produce numerous outstanding performances this past year. From setting new ground-breaking records, to exceptional individual and team achievements, the gymnastics fraternity was provided with a fresh experience for everyone, especially the gymnasts.

The year kicked off with Gymnastics South Africa’s second annual Skipnation Challenge which was a virtual competition open to all schools, clubs and general public to raise awareness of the need for basic fitness and physical education in line with the current physical education curriculum. Over 94 schools and clubs entered this challenge which followed the Gymnastics in a Box initiative aimed at getting learners active again.

We also took to teaching the community how to take care of their mental wellbeing. A mental health and wellness drive was launched in collaboration with leading visual-led learning experts, Believe Perform which saw gymnastics clubs across the country getting access to the latest information and support to promote mental wellness. The Federation implemented ‘Mental Wellness Mondays’, which featured content on social media aimed at raising awareness of Mental Health.

We had a packed program with the concurrent hosting of three annual events in Tshwane this year. We successfully hosted our national championships, Gym Games, our showcase event, #Perfect10 and the very first African Jump Rope Championships on South African soil. Thanks to a new partnership we secured with SuperSport schools this year, all three events were available to live stream and can be rewatched on the SuperSport Schools app.

Gymnastics South Africa successfully hosted six International Gymnastics Federation (FIG) academies aimed at providing coaches worldwide with a common knowledge base for the development of high-performance gymnasts. It also created the opportunity for FIG expert, Louis Fourie, to lecture and for the license for Men and Women’s Artistic Gymnastics to be reviewed.

On top of everything we had going on, we also hosted Phase 2 of the Gymnastics Coach training to advance the development of gymnastics in Uganda. The training turned out to be a success with loads of support from the Ugandan government officials and the community at large.

A series of momentous achievements at the Birmingham Commonwealth Games left many South Africans beaming with pride after Gymnastics SA’ Women’s Artistic Gymnastics (WAG) team placed South Africa firmly on the international map with their incredible performance. Olympic medallist, Caitlin Rooskrantz earned herself a bronze medal in the final women’s artistic apparatus. This follows the historic 6th place finishing by Olympic gymnast, Naveen Daries, in the overall Women’s Artistic All-round finals where the previous highest result was 9th in 1998.

While continuing to fly the South African flag high, Caitlin Rooskrantz, proudly claimed gold after an effortless performance on the uneven bar at 2022 FIG World Artistic Gymnastics World Cup in Cairo just after recently winning the Women’s Artistic Gymnastics Award at the SA Gymnastics Annual Sports Awards.

It was encouraging to see how the other disciplines also performed well this year and successfully put themselves on the radar. We had our own Dominique D’Oliveira competing against the world's best traceurs at the inaugural FIG Parkour World Championship in Kōtō, Tokyo. She secured a semi-finals spot. Matthew Bosch made a strong showing at the Trampoline World Age Group Competition and secured a semi-finals spot in the Double Mini.

After Team South Africa’s performance at the Commonwealth Games, we did not think it could get any better, yet gymnastics in our country continues to soar. This has truly been such an inspirational year, not only for the younger gymnasts watching our top gymnasts competing at international levels with high-quality competitors but also for the entire management and coaching staff of the South African gymnastics fraternity.

Our biggest achievement remains growing the sport of gymnastics. This year we piloted a new Social Enterprise project, aimed at introducing gymnastics to previously disadvantaged communities. In November, Khayelitsha Gymnastics Club hosted their first Community Gymnastics Festival and well over 500 children participated. This pilot project has demonstrated there is a real need for children to engage in some form of physical exercise, play and development. I’m confident gymnastics will deliver on this need. Bring on 2023!