Like everything else last year, the 2020 Olympics had to be postponed. But with better times on the horizon, the Olympics are on their way. Since 1992, South African athletes have been bringing home a steady number of medals every year. Athletics, rowing and swimming have seen the country’s most consistent wins. The 2016 games brought 10 medals to the country – could the upcoming games be even better?
According to https://www.onlinegamblingsa.com sports betting is the most popular form of gambling in South Africa and there’s no reason that betting on the Olympics should be any different. The country has entered 133 athletes across 15 sports in this year’s games, giving bettors a wide range of options. There are 83 male athletes and 50 female athletes competing – a fairly well-balanced roster. These include athletes in two of the Olympic Games’ newest sports, as well as some of the most established. Here is a list of South African gold medal hopefuls who just might be the safest bets this year.
Football
While South Africa has never medalled in football, this year could be the year. Olympic rules require that all but three players on each team must be under 24 years old. These rules level the playing field a little and encourage young players. South Africa is one of the countries that has a strong group of young players, some of whom play for Premier League clubs in England. One of the players to keep an eye on is Keletso Makgalwa, a left winger who plays for Mamelodi Sundowns. Though he hasn’t had much playing time so far this season, he was named the Nedbank Cup’s Most Promising Young Player in the last season. Kegs Chauke, aged 18, is another promising young player whose career at Southampton is off to a great start.
Rugby Sevens
South Africa is well known for its Rugby Union team, the Springboks. Rugby Sevens is a variation of Rugby Union. It is essentially speed rugby, with seven players on each side playing seven-minute halves. It was introduced to the Summer Olympics for the Rio 2016 games and proved a popular addition. The Springbok Sevens team – also known as the Blitzboks – brought home the bronze that year. Winger Siviwe Soyizwapi is captaining the team and with 30 caps under his belt, he is a capable leader of the team. With a combination of experienced and young players, the Blitzboks are looking good to improve on their bronze win at the last Olympics.
Athletics
One of South Africa’s strongest events in the Olympics has always been athletics and this year is no different. South African athletes have qualified in both the men’s and women’s 100m sprint and the 400m hurdles, as well as the marathon. Ruswahl Samaai has consistently placed third in World Championship and Commonwealth Games events since 2017. His talent continues to grow, however, with a gold medal-winning performance at last year’s World Athletics Diamond League event and he will hopefully be able to bring home the gold at the Olympics.
Sport climbing
One of the new sports added for the 2020 games (alongside karate, surfing and skateboarding), sport climbing is actually three climbing events combined into one. The winners will be judged on how well they perform at lead climbing, bouldering, and speed climbing. South Africa is sending two young hopefuls: Christopher Cosser, aged 20 and Erin Sterkenburg, aged 18. They are both exciting climbers to watch, with a lot of potential. Even if they don’t win, there is a hope that their participation will increase the profile of climbing in the country.
Swimming
There are several South African swimmers, both male and female, competing in the 2020 Olympic Games. The competitor with the best chance of winning gold is Tatjana Schoenmaker, who is competing in the Women’s 100m and 200m breaststroke. Schoenmaker won the gold for both of these same events at the 2018 Commonwealth Games. She also broke the African record for 200m breaststroke at that same event. Though there will be fierce competition, South Africa has a strong record of winning medals in swimming events and Schoenmaker may just be able to continue that tradition.
It seems as if the whole world is looking forward to the delayed 2020 Olympics this summer, and no matter how much someone says that it’s participating that really matters, we all know that winning feels great. This year could just be South Africa’s year to bring home some gold medals!