Minister of Sport Gayton McKenzie says he plans to reimburse Jo-Ane van Dyk, and her parents, the money spent to help the athlete bring back a silver medal in the women’s javelin from the Paris Olympics.
McKenzie was speaking at Team SA’s arrival back in the country on Tuesday at OR Tambo International Airport.
“We must invest in our athletes,” said the Patriotic Alliance leader McKenzie.
“I must congratulate [Jo-Ane] Van Dyk on speaking up. I spoke to her this morning. I’m about to speak to her father, and I’m going to make sure that whatever they put in, we must give them back. They’ve invested in the country. We can’t sit by and see them spend their last money and bring a medal back. It will never happen under our watch that an athlete complains about inadequate help.
“Rest assured, sport will change in South Africa. This is a massive opportunity for us.”
Sports Minister Gayton McKenzie says talks with Supersport are positive and he is working on getting Springbok matches to be broadcast on SABC. He said an announcement is expected next week. 🎥 : Michael Sherman/@IOLsport pic.twitter.com/g8pOSf6lly
— IOL News (@IOL) August 13, 2024
Tough journey
McKenzie was responding to Van Dyk revealing her parents had to help fund the 26-year-old’s Olympic journey, and that it was financially straining without little other sources of funding.
The minister also said he plans to double the number of Team SA athletes to 300 for the Los Angeles Olympics in 2028.
Around 150 athletes, or 143 to be exact, flew the SA flag at the Paris Olympics.
South Africa finished 44th on the medal table with six medals, comprised of one gold, three silver, and two bronze.
For comparison, the USA sent a team of 592 athletes which ultimately topped the medal table with 126 medals in total, which included 40 golds.
McKenzie said he believed increasing the size of the team would translate to more medals.
“I can promise the nation, that come 2028 in Los Angeles you will see a different team of South Africans competing. We can’t go there and have our athletes struggle.
“The work started with the president appointing me, as I’m an action man. So he already had foresight with this problem. In 100 days I will be able to tell the nation what I’ve done to ensure that we take no less than 300 athletes to LA. We can’t take 143 only. You must take 300 minimum.
The performance Team SA, and in particular swimmer Tatjana Smith, was also hailed by McKenzie.
“We are ecstatic about their performance. They’ve doubled their tally from Tokyo where they got three medals. In Paris we got six medals. We also have our most decorated Olympian in Tatjana Smith. They’ve done very well under trying circumstances.”