Team SA’s athletes and para-athletes will float back on a victory high from the 2023 Commonwealth Youth Games, having earned 20 medals in total with seven gold wins!
Global (11 August, 2023) — South Africa returns from the Commonwealth Youth Games with not one, not two, but twenty medals honouring our beyond-talented athletes and para-athletes!
The Commonwealth Youth Games saw 49 athletes and para-athletes travel to Trinidad and Tobago where the Games have been afoot. Across disciplines like netball, swimming, various sub-disciplines of athletics and cycling, Team SA exercised their hearts and determination, and the results speak for themselves.
Our first gold medal was bagged by 16-year-old junior cyclist Miles Libenberg who clutched his victory on the day of the opening ceremony by three seconds.
It was also the biggest race the young cyclist has ever won.
Shortly thereafter, 16-year-old Jessica Thompson’s butterfly finesse added another gold to the tally and after that, it was all systems go for podium placements.
In total, Team SA scooped up seven gold medals, six silver and seven bronze!
All the athletes outdid themselves, but a special shout-out must go to Alicia Khunou who was the first to earn double gold at the Commonwealth Youth Games for her shot put superpowers (and broke a Youth Games record).
Meanwhile in medals of the heart, Charne Swart won the Fair Play Award for an act of kindness she showed to a competitor at the FISU World University Games!
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