Cape Town - Lifesaving SA national team members brought home nine medals, including three golds, from the ISL Lifesaving World Championships in Italy.
With silver and bronze medals on top of the golds, the team was placed eighth in the overall competition.
The Championships creates platforms for athletes worldwide to showcase their talent in lifesaving sport and rescue.
About 24 athletes represented the national team, with 10 from the Western Cape, and the rest hailing from Kwa-Zulu Natal, Eastern Cape, Gauteng, and the Free State.
Both the management and the winning participants are so proud of their achievements and still in shock.
Mike Rodda, national team manager, said: “The team displayed some great results in both the youth and open competitions. We are extremely happy with the team’s overall performance; South Africa walks away with a nice basket of medals and several SA records in the pool. The team really did their best and the results speak for themselves.
"Congratulations to all the athletes on a successful World Championships, and a huge thank you to the management, coaches, and supporters."
Winning the championships in their categories were Samuel Booysen, who got a gold medal in the junior boy’s flags; Naor Lombard, who scored in the junior boy’s surf ski; and Mark Keeling, who won the senior boy’s surf ski.
Lombard trained five hours a day for six days a week. He said: "Winning a gold medal for surf ski felt unreal and is definitely the biggest highlight of my lifesaving career. This was my first world champs and the opening ceremony was unforgettable."
Booysen said: "It took hard work, dedication and discipline. I prepared myself mentally and physically for the competition, not knowing I could achieve such accomplishment. It was an astonished and special achievement."
Kendra du Toit enjoyed the camaraderie between the countries, saying it was memorable. "I didn’t realize how much you could learn from your successes and your failures. I'm still trying to wrap my head around the fact that I represented my country at such a prestigious event. I have never experienced an event with such class. It gave me goosebumps."