Hockey enthusiast Aslam Bezuidenhout shares insights from Zenani Kraai who makes his Olympic debut for South Africa this year.
South Africa (17 July 2024) – During a Zoom call, Zenani Kraai recalled being at home with his family when he received a flurry of notifications on his phone. Upon opening his phone, he saw that he had been messaged and tagged a few times, and when checking what it was, he saw his name on the list of the 18 athletes selected to travel to Paris as part of the South African Men’s Hockey team.
“A dream come true. I remember feeling really happy and that my family was also just really happy for me and congratulated me, they told me to just play my game and that it was my hard work that got me here”
Being an integral part of the team’s journey to Olympic qualification, where the team beat the best of the continent and faced a strong Egyptian team edging out a 2-1 victory in the final in November of 2023. More recently, Kraai’s involvement in the team was at the FIH Nations Cup hosted in Poland, where the team beat Pakistan 4-3 in the bronze medal playoff. Both of these competitions serve as a platform for preparation for the team heading into the final stretch.
Kraai currently has 18 Caps for the men’s team and recalled his first Cap at the Azlan Shah Cup, Malaysia, in November 2022, “…crying the first time I sang the national anthem”. This moment highlights the emotions and pride Kraai felt; the culmination of years of hard work.
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Kraai’s journey to field hockey came through community outreach projects. He first found himself playing football, as most of the other kids in Langa were playing the sport. However, he reflects that a friend asked him to join a clinic one day, and from that day on, he found himself spending more and more time on Langa’s blue turf.
“I eventually found myself skipping out football sessions to go and play hockey…..and eventually hockey was the only sport I was playing.”
Kraai currently applies his trade at Langa Hockey Club and has represented the province and the country at various levels.
During our Zoom interaction, Kraai spoke to the accessibility of community sports programs to the youth of Langa—as opposed to growing up in a different area such as Gughulethu, Khayelitsha, or Phillipi, where they aren’t as widely available. This allowed him to find the sport he has fallen in love with.
Furthermore, he expands on the idea that these programs exhibited that finding success was possible in his situation, an example being the success found by Lungile Tsolikile being able to represent the country and his sport at an Olympic level. Similarly to the way SA men’s hockey alumni Tsoeikile has been an ongoing inspiration to the youth – so too Kraai is taking strides to be an example in his community.
Coming from the township of Langa and facing adverse social and economic conditions, Kraai’s journey to the national team has had a few hurdles he has had to overcome. He recalls the social and personal sacrifices made, missing birthdays, milestones and family occasions to be able to train or make national team camps.
During moments of difficulty, or questions of self-doubt, Kraai notes thinking at times “am I ever going to make it where I see myself”, he is able to lean on his parents and uncle for support, often being able to remind him of his hard work and dedication. Moreover, Kraai is able to lean on the support of his Men’s first-team coach and former national athletes at the club to remain driven and positive.
Self-resilience is an additional means by which Kraai is able to tackle the hurdles he faces, noting his reminders to himself that “things won’t stay like this, someday it will change” – in relation to his social and economic conditions. As well as the notion of “Don’t cheat yourself, put in the hours and the selections and results will reflect your hard work”. These two ideas work in symphony to help Kraai remain grounded and continue to achieve the goals he sets out for himself.
As an outsider or fan of the sport it easy to associate sporting success with these big team selections however, when speaking on what success means to Zenani and reflecting on his journey thus far, he noted “to me if I am able to inspire others through the way I have walked,or to walk a better path… not the achievements but to be an example to those who look like and have lived a life like mine then I’ve found success.”
Speaking to his ambitions for the upcoming games, he has the aim of being able to provide the team with whatever is required from him, ticking individual boxes and enjoying the opportunity to represent his country and to play with the ability that has gotten him there.
Furthermore, giving insight into what makes the team tick, he notes that culture is at the forefront of the team’s journey to achieving goals and creating a cohesive unit.
“The team culture brings people from different walks of life together, people who are usually shy, are free and able to find themselves… the little things such as spending time together after training, chatting, getting to share hockey knowledge.”
Expanding on how it fosters an environment of togetherness essential to the team’s success, he says:
“If we all have the same goal and stick together we will be able to tackle anything that comes our way.”
As a closing question when asking what advice he would give to a 10-year-old aspiring olympian he shared “to keep showing up, despite it raining, you’re not feeling good, whatever’s going on…. because when you show up and put the time in, all the excuses flush away. So get there, play hockey, enjoy and express yourself.”
Kraai’s journey thus far has already been adorned with success and continues to rise, with a few more Olympic games, and potential World Cup debut on the cards for the young man.
Despite the challenges that the South African Field Hockey team has faced, the togetherness and culture as mentioned by Kraai has seen the team go neck and neck with some of the worlds best and aim to continue doing so in the upcoming Olympic games. The team is currently in the last phases of fundraising for their Olympic campaign. If you would like to support their journey, you can find more information at https://fundyourpassion.protouch.africa/product/south-african-mens-national-team-paris2024-campaign/.
Sources: Aslam Bezuidenhout – Interview with Zenani Kraai
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