During the past weekend, athletes from all over South Africa participated in the Athletics South Africa (ASA) Sub-Youth, Youth, Junior, U/23 and Schools Athletics Championships held in Germiston. Based on the athletes’ performance during this event, the National Squad was selected for participation in the IAAF Junior Athletics Championships to be held in Barcelona, Spain in July 2012.

Tuks athletes excelled during the Championships and when the squad was announced it came as no surprise that the Tuks athletes outnumbered the athletes selected from any of the other provinces of South Africa. 

The performances by Duwayne Boer and Janet Seeliger during the Championships impressed the selectors and they were both selected for the squad despite their youth. Boer, a member of the hpc Sports School, won the gold medal in the Youth Boys’ long jump with a distance of 7.68 m, which exceeded the qualifying distance of 7.65 m. This is the fourth best distance ever achieved by a South African Youth athlete.

Seeliger, the most successful Tuks athlete participating in the Championships, won gold medals in the long jump and the 400 m race, as well as a bronze medal in the 200 m race.

The Tuks athletes in the squad are:
Ben Rens                       200 m
Ruan Greyling               400 m
Pieter Conradie            400 m
Stephanie Wicksell      400 m
Janet Seeliger               400 m/Long jump
Lee van den Berg         110 m/Hurdles
Mpho Maphuta               Long jump
Duwayne Boer               Long jump
Zandri van der Merwe   Long jump
Gerhard de Beer            Discus
Simone Meyer                Discus
   
The final team will be announced by the end of April 2012.