Olympics: more SA medal hopefuls
Brad Morgan
23 July 2004
Track and field athletes aside, SA's Olympic squad includes the men's and women's hockey teams, the first badminton players to represent South Africa at an Olympics, a swimming team that's short on size but not on punch, and lone representatives in archery, canoeing, diving, judo, sailing, shooting, taekwondo and wrestling.
Nicol looks to sign off on a high
After missing out on Sydney 2000 because Nocsa opted not to send them, and after an epic battle at the recent Olympic qualifying tournament in Sydney - not to mention a case that went before the International Court of Arbitration for Sport in Lausanne - the men's hockey team was understandably ecstatic to be included in the squad for Athens.
For star striker Greg Nicol, the scorer of
236 goals in just 193 Tests, it is the perfect stage to pull down the curtain on a brilliant career. At Atlanta in 1996 he was the tournament's top goal scorer, but in 2000 he had to deal with the disappointment of the hockey team's omission from the Games. Now he has the opportunity to sign off on a high.
Nicol provides the experience in the squad, along with the captain Craig Jackson, Craig Fulton and Gregg Clark, the most-capped South African hockey player ever.
Olympic Team South Africa
Meet the men and women who'll be swimming, cycling, boxing, fencing, rowing, running, wrestling ... trying for SA at Athens 2004. 
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The national women's hockey side for Athens has also been named. It is a team that has matured as a unit in recent times, and has shown that it can compete against any country, despite a relatively low world ranking of thirteenth. Expect them to perform some way better than that; the SA team is a side no one can take lightly.
Striker Pietie Coetzee is to the women's side what Greg Nicol is to the men's team. She is one of the best goal scorers in the game, and much will depend on her form. However, players like Johke Koornhof, captain Susan Webber, and Kerry Bee can be relied on to net their share of goals.
Badminton's breakthrough
For badminton there is a celebration of another kind. It is the first time badminton players have been included in the South African Olympic team. This, coupled with the country's recent first ever participation in the Thomas and Uber Cups - the men's and
women's World Cups - makes it a wonderful breakthrough year for the sport.
Initially, only four cyclists were named in the Olympic team, but that was later increased to five.
Ryan Cox, Robert Hunter, Tiaan Kannemeyer and Anriette Schoeman cracked the nod for the road race, but Nocsa declined to select JP van Zyl for the track.
However, Van Zyl and Hunter were then selected for the Madison after world cycling's governing body, the UCI, offered South Africa a place in the race. Together they should form a formidable team, and a medal is not beyond the realms of imagination.
Ramon Di Clemente and Donovan Cech will be flying the flag for South African rowing, and the heavyweight pairing bear watching. Recently, at the World Cup Regatta in Munich, they finished second to the Italian pairing of Dario Lari and Giuseppe Vita.
No women swimmers
The swimming team consists of only eight men. Disappointingly, not one woman qualified
for Athens. Three of the men are real medal contenders, however.
Terence Parkin won silver in the 200 metres breaststroke in Sydney four years ago, and he will be hoping for similar success this time around, if not an improvement of one place.
Then there are the Arizona University sprint twins, Ryk Neethling and Roland Schoeman. Neethling's best event is probably the 200 metres freestyle, while Schoeman is top class over any 50 metre event. He and Neethling are also real contenders in the 100 metres freestyle. They have both demonstrated excellent form in 2004, and if they manage to peak at Athens then medals are very likely.
Experienced Van Coller
Sprint star Alan van Coller represents South African canoeing. He has experience on his side, having finished sixth in the 500 metres at the Sydney Olympics. His recent performances also suggest that he is still getting better.
Other athletes who are the sole representatives of their
sports include judo's Henriette Moller, diver Jenna Dreyer, and sailing's Gareth Blanckenberg.
There are just two South Africans entered in the ultra-competitive and very testing triathlon, Conrad Stoltz in the men's race and Megan Hall in the women's race. The fact that they will be tackling athletes from countries that have a number of entrants counts against their chances of success.
"Many athletes will be participating in the Olympic Games for the first time, and we are confident that they will endeavour to do their best", said Nocsa president Sam Ramsamy.
"Participating in the Olympic Games is a dream come true for every athlete. Years of training and discipline will eventually be put to the test, and we believe that this group of athletes will do our country proud."
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