Another year, another faster time; it seems to be the norm when Charné Swart lines up to race the 800 metres.

On Saturday, March 9, the Tuks medical student won the women’s 800 metres in a time of 2:01.52, during the Gauteng North Athletics Championships at Pilditch Stadium. Her time was 1.40 seconds faster than her previous best time. 

Caster Semenya, Prudence Sekgodiso and Gena Lofstrand are the only South African female athletes to have been faster over 800 metres since 2013. 

Swart is naturally excited about the time she has run.

"My times during training indicated that I was on track to run a fast race. It was a case of waiting for the right moment to do so."

The way Swart won proved that she is tactically savvy. She did not take the lead from the start. After the first lap, she was third. The Tuks student-athlete bided her time and "kicked" with 350 metres to go, opening a gap stride by stride. Michaela Oosthuizen (Tuks) was second in 2:03.54. It is a massive personal best. Last year, she ran 2:06.26.

The ultimate challenge for any female 800-metre athlete is to dip in under 2 minutes. Swart is not one to get ahead of herself. 

"My aim is undoubtedly to run a sub-2-second race. It will be a blessing if I do so. But I am not obsessed with it; it will happen when it happens."

Since 2019, Swart has improved her time in the 800 metres by more than 10 seconds. Swart also won the 1500 metres yesterday. Her time was 4:19.30.

Another Tuks medical student, Colette Uys, achieved a unique hat trick at the Gauteng North Athletics Championships. She won the women’s shot put title with a distance of 15.61 metres, the discuss with 50.18 metres, and the hammer throw with 54.20 metres. 

Earlier this season, she set a personal best in the hammer throw, throwing 61.31 metres. Uys studied at the University of South Alabama for the past three years. According to her, it changed her perception of how to train. 

"I have returned a better athlete. I know now what it means to train hard. Before I left for the USA, I had never done any gym work. The Americans could not believe it. When they asked me to do a clean and snatch with weights, I had no idea what they were talking about. As a youngster in South Africa, I relied on my natural strength."

According to Uys, many advised her to quit athletics as she is a medical student.  

"To me, it is not an option. If there is a season where I don't improve, I might consider quitting. But for now, my goal is to qualify for the Olympic Games.