Ruard van Renen, Paul Roos Gymnasium student, said that he owes much of his swimming accomplishments to his coaches Keith Jansen and Pierre Roubaix for their training and mentorship. PHOTO: Facebook/Paul Roos Gymnasium.
Paul Roos Gymnasium (PRG) student Ruard van Renen, 17, won a silver medal for the men’s open 50-meter backstroke at the SA National Short Course Championships.
According to the school’s Facebook page, Van Renen was part of four swimmers from PRG who took part in the event this year which was hosted in Pietermaritzburg between 24 and 27 October.
“Winning that silver medal still needs to sink in. Touching the wall and seeing my name pop up second on the timetable still feels like a dream,” said Van Renen.
Van Renen finished the men’s open 50-meter backstroke with a time of 25.49 seconds. He also placed sixth in the 200-meter backstroke and 50-meter butterfly with a time of 2 minutes and 2.73 seconds and 24.79 seconds respectively.
“Finally seeing results after working hard for the last few years have really motivated me to push through and work harder to get even better and maybe get top spot next year,” said Van Renen.
Francois Malherbe, Paul Roos Gymnasium pupil, had previously performed at previous swimming galas before being invited to the SA National Short Course Championship. However, according to Malherbe, this year’s competition had a “strict no photos policy due to covid”. PHOTO: Supplied/ Francois Malherbe.
Paul Roos Gymnasium representation
In other events, PRG student Francois Malherbe, 16, placed twelfth in the 100-meter butterfly with a time of 57.01 seconds and twenty-ninth in the 100-meter freestyle with a time of 53.55 seconds.
“I did not see this competition as one of my main events but it ended up being my best performing gala I’ve had so far,” said Malherbe.
According to Van Renen, training leading up to the event was forced to change due to the nationwide lockdown. During earlier lockdown levels, training in the pool was prohibited and Van Renen was forced to stay fit by using body weight workouts.
“In terms of how intense it was, I can say that after every workout I could barely make it to the kitchen to get food to refuel,” he said.
However, two and a half months before the gala, training intensity dropped and more emphasis was placed on technique said Malherbe.
Over the course of four days, there were a number of key results for those who partook in the SA National Short Course Championships. In particular, there were five swimmers who made qualifying times for the Fina World Championships. INFOGRAPHIC: Michael Brown.
SA National Short Course Championships
According to Team South Africa, the SA National Short Course Championships is an event where 200 swimmers from around the country are invited to participate and potentially qualify for the Fina World Championships.
This year, five swimmers made 25 Fina qualification times according to a press release. Dean Price, Swimming South Africa’s High Performance Manager, said that he was excited by the competition he saw during this year’s event.
“We have had an incredible Championships here in Pietermaritzburg with a lot of standout performances, like Matthew Sates, who has been lifting the standard on the men’s side and of course powerhouse Tatjana Schoenmaker breaking South African and African records,” said Price.