As the saying goes, all good things must come to an end, and so did Danilo von Ludwiger's remarkable journey as a TuksVolleyball player. However, he ensured his farewell was nothing short of golden.

This past weekend, the USSA Beach Volleyball men's final was an "All Stripe Affair," with Tuks A and Tuks B battling it out on the sand. Von Ludwiger and his partner Thomas Schultz claimed victory over Heiko Güther and Aidan Pillay, securing one last gold medal for Tuks.

For Von Ludwiger, a sixth-year medical student, the moment was especially meaningful as it marked the end of his playing career in the iconic Tuks vest. Reflecting on the achievement, he might well have thought, 'I love it when a plan comes together.'

"Hats off to Heiko and Aidan. They made us work for every point. Giving up was never an option for them. It took three sets to win gold."

Von Ludwiger had special praise for Güther. 

"I was impressed with how he stepped up and has matured as a player. I leave knowing that with him playing TuksVolleyball will be in a good place."

When reflecting on his on-court heroics, Von Ludwiger can't help saying that 2024 is a year he will remember for some time. 

"I have achieved all but one of the goals I have set for myself. It is the first time that Tuks has won the USSA indoor and beach volleyball tournaments in the same year. I got to captain South Africa to win the gold at the CUCSA Games. Leo Williams and I won bronze at the Continental Cup in Morocco. The only goal I missed was qualifying for the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, but I have qualified for next year's World Champs in Australia."

The "Doctor" credits his success to hard work.

"I made an effort to train nine times a week. Being at Tuks made it easy to do so because of my diligent teammates. During training, we push each other to our limits. 

"It would be wrong not to credit my coaches as well. The Australian coach, Adam Maskell, has given Heiko and me many new perspectives on how to play. Tom has joined in some of the sessions. Tuks's head coach finetuned the art to make every player believe they can play at their best."