Birmingham: Last night, curtains came down on the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham at a glittering closing ceremony, with Team South Africa securing ninth place on the medal table.
The medal table was once again topped by Australia, with hosts England finishing in second place.
The South African team claimed 27 medals in total in Birmingham, seven of them gold, nine silver and 11 bronze.
Leading the way was teenage swimming star Lara van Niekerk, who was the only South African to take two gold medals home from the Games after claiming victory in both the 50m and 100m breaststroke in the pool. The SA swimmers racked up a total of 11 medals, while the remaining 16 medals were shared across eight other sporting codes.
Deputy Minister of Sport, Arts, and Culture Nocawe Mafu attending the closing ceremony in Birmingham congratulated the team for their efforts and indicated the following:
“Well done to all our wonderful athletes for their achievements at the 2022 Commonwealth Games. We are very proud of where we stand in the rankings as it demonstrates the hard work from all our medal-winners. To our athletes who didn’t reach the podium but still produced personal best performances, well done, and they should note that it’s not all lost and better luck next time. I hope they will be able to take this as a learning curve and go back home to work extra hard as we commence with preparations for the next big target, which is the Olympic Games in Paris in 2024.”
TEAM SA MEDALLISTS AT THE COMMONWEALTH GAMES
GOLD (7)
1. Lara van Niekerk (Swimming: 50m breaststroke)
2. Lara van Niekerk (Swimming: 100m breaststroke)
3. Pieter Coetzé (Swimming: 100m backstroke)
4. Tatjana Schoenmaker (Swimming: 200m breaststroke)
5. Michaela Whitebooi (Judo: -48kg)
6. Ronald Brown, Angelo Davids, Selvyn Davids, Zain Davids, Muller du Plessis, Christie Grobbelaar, Dewald Human, Sako Makata, Mfundo Ndhlovu, JC Pretorius, Siviwe Soyizwapi, Impi Visser Shaun Williams (Men’s Rugby Sevens)
7. Ndodomzi Jonathan Ntutu (Athletics: T11/12 100m)
SILVER (9)
1. Tatjana Schoenmaker (Swimming: 200m breaststroke)
2. Pieter Coetzé (Swimming: 50m backstroke)
3. Chad de Clos (Swimming: 200m butterfly)
4. Erin Gallagher (Swimming: 50m butterfly)
5. Thabelo Muvhango, Bridget Calitz, Anneke Snyman and Esme Kruger (Bowls: Women’s Fours)
6. Akani Simbine (Athletics: 100m)
7. Charl du Toit (Para-athletics: T37/38 100m)
8. Nicolaas de Lange (Wrestling: Freestyle 97kg)
9. Daryl Impey (Cycling: Road Race)
BRONZE (11)
1. Kaylene Corbett (Swimming: 200m breaststroke)
2. Pieter Coetzé (Swimming: 200m backstroke)
3. Christian Sadie (Para-swimming: S7 50m freestyle)
4. Charne Griesel (Judo: -52kg)
5. Caitlin Rooskrantz (Gymnastics: Uneven bars)
6. Candice Lill (Cycling: Mountain biking)
7. Desiree Levin and Victoria van der Merwe (Para-bowls: Women’s Pairs B6-8)
8. Jovan van Vuuren (Athletics: Long jump)
9. Simnikiwe Bongco (Boxing: Middleweight)
10. Phiwokuhle Mnguni (Boxing: Featherweight)
11. Zeney van der Walt (Athletics: 400m hurdles)
