Tatjana Schoenmaker set a new Olympic Record for the Women’s 100m breaststroke, completing the swim in just 1 minute and 4.82 seconds!
Tokyo (25 July 2021) – Tatjana Schoenmaker had a goal to just win a medal at the Tokyo Olympics… but the incredible athlete has done so much more by setting a new record!
The South African set the new Olympic record for the Women’s 100m breaststroke, completing the swim in just 1 minute and 4.82 seconds!
“I didn’t expect that at all. When I saw I was ahead, I thought I was dying because I was going way too fast at the end and I thought I could just try and hold on. I obviously saw that they were catching up a bit at the end and I was getting quite tired… I didn’t expect that, very happy with that as a first race.”
But Schoenmaker has been training for this win since she was little!
The talented athlete began swimming at the age of five and started competing at eight years old. She initially combined swimming with other sports but began to focus on swimming towards the end of high school.
“I had my first competition at age eight and won the 25m butterfly, from there my parents decided that swimming was for me and that I had a talent for it.”
Her drive behind the sport is fueled by her love for it.
“My love for swimming makes me want to get up every morning and go to training. It’s like my second home. Being fortunate enough to travel the world doing what I love, seeing new places and meeting new people and sports heroes motivates me a lot. The most important thing every young swimmer should realise is that nothing is impossible. They only need to believe and be prepared to put in the long and hard hours.”
Schoenmaker was named as the “Top 10 Female Swimmers to look out for” in an Olympics article earlier this month and it seems she has risen to the occasion while flying the “Team South Africa” flag sky high!
“Africa has a new swimming star, and her name is Tatjana Schoenmaker. The South African recently posted three continental records at the National Championships and is one of only five women to have ever swum the 200m breaststroke, her signature event, in under 2.20. As the only woman to have achieved this feat since 2016, she is favourite to win the 200m breast in Tokyo.”
So with this one under the belt, we can all look forward to the 200m breaststroke. We are right behind you Tatjana… and all the incredible Team South Africa athletes!!!
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