No Tatjana Smith or Chad le Clos, But South Africa Still Eyeing Historic World Championship Team

A new wave of South African swimmers is rising to the occasion, as the country looks set to assemble its largest team in more than ten years for the 2024 World Aquatics Championships in Singapore. Despite big names like Tatjana Smith and Chad le Clos sitting out, a strong showing at this week’s national championships in Gqeberha is driving optimism.

According to the official psyche sheets, at least 16 swimmers have already achieved qualifying times ahead of the global competition taking place from July to August — a promising sign of depth and emerging talent within the squad.

Young talent steps up as veterans take a break

Rising star Pieter Coetzé leads the pack, with qualifying times in four events — the 50m, 100m, and 200m backstroke, and the 100m freestyle. Rebecca Meder is in contention for three: the 100m and 200m breaststroke, and the 200m individual medley.

Picture: Anton Geyser

While only two swimmers per country can compete in each event, several races could feature three South Africans under the qualifying time. In the men’s 100m backstroke, Coetzé, US-based Ruard van Renen, and Wikus Potgieter are all under the 53.94-second mark required.

Coetzé, Van Renen — who recently earned bronze at the NCAA championships in the 100-yard backstroke — and Jonah Pool-Jones have all gone under the 25.11-second benchmark in the 50m backstroke, with Potgieter also close behind.

Backstroke, breaststroke depth shows promise

In the women’s 100m backstroke, Olivia Nel and Milla Drakopoulos are inside the 1:00.46 qualifying time, with Jessica Thompson just outside. Nel, Thompson, and Tayla Jonker are well-positioned to meet the 50m backstroke standard, while Drakopoulos is narrowly trailing the required 28.22.

Picture: GSport

Historically, Swimming South Africa has opted not to select swimmers who only qualify in non-Olympic events — such as the 50m backstroke, breaststroke, and butterfly — encouraging athletes to focus on Olympic disciplines. However, exceptions have been made, notably in 2013, when Giulio Zorzi was selected after qualifying in the 50m breaststroke and went on to claim bronze behind Cameron van der Burgh at the world championships.

Teenage standout Chris Smith, who set the U-20 short-course world record in the 50m breaststroke last year, is close to qualifying for both the 50m and 100m breaststroke. Michael Houlie is also on track for the 50m breaststroke.

New challengers emerge in breaststroke and freestyle

Olympic finalist Kaylene Corbett and Rebecca Meder could both secure spots in the women’s 200m breaststroke, a race long dominated by Tatjana Smith. Aimee Canny is chasing qualifying times in the 200m freestyle and 200m individual medley.

Matthew Sates, who once dazzled on the international stage, currently holds a qualifying time only in the 400m individual medley. However, if he rediscovers his top form, he could qualify in additional events like the 200m freestyle, 200m IM, and 200m butterfly.

Converted times could pose a challenge

Some qualifying times on the entry lists are converted from short-course (25m) pools, which could make qualification in Gqeberha more difficult. For instance, Van Renen’s long-course best in the 50m backstroke is listed as 54.22 — just shy of the 53.94 required.

Only eight South African swimmers qualified for the 2024 Paris Olympics, where the qualifying standards were stricter than for the Singapore world championships in almost every event except the men’s 800m freestyle and the 100m freestyle.

The last time South Africa fielded a large world championship team was in 2017, when 13 swimmers competed in individual events. The biggest team of the past two decades came in 2011, with 21 swimmers — a squad that included a young Erin Gallagher, who is expected to be part of the Singapore team as well.

Veteran Chad le Clos, who also competed in 2011, is currently on an extended break and will not take part in this year’s championships.

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Sourced: Times Live

Picture: Singapore Swimming Federation