The 2016 TuksSport Awards saw rowers Lawrence Brittain, Shaun Keeling, Ursula Grobler and Kirsten McCann take top honours by winning the Sportsman and Sportswoman of the Year respectively. The prestigious event took place in Pretoria on Friday, 14 October 2016 where a total of 426 TuksSport athletes and officials were honoured. 

After surviving a Stage 4 Hodgkin lymphoma two years ago, Lawrence continued on his quest to participate in the Olympics. Both he and Shaun Keeling were included in the Men's Heavyweight Pair and went on to win a silver medal for team South Africa at the Rio Olympic Games.

In 2015, Ursula and Kirsten qualified for the Rio Games at the World Championships and went on to compete in the World Cup 1 in Varese Italy where the Single Sculls pair rowed to a bronze medal. This achievement was followed by a silver medal in their boat class at the World Cup 2 in Lucerne, Switzerland. Ursula and Kirsten finished fifth in the Final A at the 2016 Rio Olympics.

A total of 46 athletes, coaches, managers and medical staff from TuksSport represented South Africa and our neighbouring countries at the Rio Olympic and Paralympic Games. TuksSport athletes managed to bring home three silver medals for team South Africa while numerous other athletes made history.

Mr Kobus van der Walt, Director of TuksSport, said the University of Pretoria has experienced another remarkable year. 'We provide a home for our athletes where they can be cared for, have trust in the people around them and are supported as best we can in all aspects of sports performance.'

Highlights of a great year in which TuksSport performed well in over 35 sporting codes, were:

• 43 Olympic and three Paralympic representatives representing South Africa and neighbouring countries;
• 95 Senior National Protea/Springbok representatives;
• eight National Coaches and Managers and 18 National Federation/SA A team representatives;
• 46 National Age Group representatives;
• 13 University of Pretoria students selected to be part of USSA National teams and other national student team representatives amounted to 21;
• a total of 15 TuksSport athletes representing South Africa at the CUCSA games while 159 athletes were senior provincial representatives;
• Assupol TuksCricket won the annual Varsity Cricket competition and represented South Africa at the Red Bull Campus Cricket World Finals in Sri-Lanka and made it to the semi-final, narrowly losing to host nation Sri-Lanka with two balls to spare; and
• TuksRugby, TuksNetball, TuksWomen's 7's, TuksRowing Men's A VIII took gold at their respective USSA competitions.

Awards:

Student Sports Administrator of the Year: Maram Mahdi (SSC)

Administrator of the Year Award: Margie Meiring (Judo)

Student Sportswoman of the Year: Tebogo Mamatu (Athletics)

Student Sportsman of the Year: David Hunt and Jake Green

Coach of the Year – Team Sport: Jenny van Dyk (Netball)

Coach of the Year – Individual Sport: Roger Barrow (Rowing)

Sports Team of the Year: Assupol Tuks 1 (Cricket)

Student Sport Club of the Year: Rowing

Sport Club of the Year: Netball

Principal's Award for Exceptional Performance in both Academics and Sport: Izette Lubbe (Netball)

Principal's Award for Outstanding Performance by a Team Representing the University in Inter-University Competitions: TuksVolleyball Ladies and TuksHockey Men

Newsmaker of the Year: Luvo Manyonga and Lawrence Brittain

Student Sportswoman of the Year: Izette Lubbe (Netball)

Sportswoman of the Year: Kirsten McCann and Ursula Grobler (Rowing)

Sportsman of the Year: Lawrence Brittain and Shaun Keeling (Rowing)