The TuksSport High School, which has since 2002 been home to young sportsmen and sportswomen who are serious about their sport and academic progress, recently officially opened their new buildings.

The school was somewhat tucked away on the Groenkloof campus, but has now moved to a new and modern building complex that forms part of the University of Pretoria’s High Performance Centre (hpc) in Hatfield.

According to the principal, Hettie de Villiers, the new buildings reflect the school’s philosophy of balance between prowess on the sports field and in the classroom. The project was funded by the Atheletics Foundation Trust.

The building complex was completed by the building contractors JC van der Linde & Venter and consists of a double-storey building for administration with an adjacent multi-purpose hall for assemblies, and to serve as a dining and study area.

A three-storey building and two double-storey buildings were designed as classrooms and a new residential block for 96 pupils with eight single rooms and 44 twin rooms was added to the complex.

In addition an open air amphitheatre for 260 pupils was provided.

According to Ben Kunz of Neo Dimensions Architects in Pretoria, the architect behind the design, some of the elements of the nearby Experimental Farm were incorporated into the design. This included the water troughs for quarantined animals which had to be preserved and used in the design.

The trees on the terrain, which formed part of an old UP arboretum, also had to be preserved. This included three different species of the South African yellowwood tree.

Kunz says the farm atmosphere was kept in mind in designing the building and raw finishes, such as red bricks and steel, were used. Certain green sustainable elements such as the orientation of the building, sun screen panels, water tanks, water saving sanitation ware and a heat pump also formed part of the project.

The school has room for 260 pupils from Grade 8 to Grade 12. Pupils who excel in swimming, athletics, triathlon, golf, judo, tennis and soccer are welcomed to the school. The school schedule is flexible and custom made to the needs of young sport stars whose sport commitments often pose challenges to traditional school programs.

For more information about the school, please contact 012 484 1786/82 or visit www.up.ac.za/tukssport-high-school.