TINTSWALO BALOYI
JOHANNESBURG – HOSTS South Africa are the favourites to dominate the upcoming Confederation Africaine de Natation Amateur (CANA) 12thAfrican Swimming Championships.
The international tournament is slated for the 16th to 23rd October 2016 at the Stadium Swimming Pool in Bloemfontein, Free State Province.
Swimming South Africa, in partnership with the Free State Provincial Government and Mangaung Municipality will play host to the swimmers.
Over 23 countries will descend upon the city of Roses.
The South African Swimming Team has dominated the event in previous years, having topped the medal table in 2010 and 2012 and will be looking to maintain that spot when the competition kicks off with pool events on October 16 and concludes with the Open Water Swimming race on October 23.
Olympic silver medalists Chad le Clos and Cameron van der Burgh together with the experience of Myles Brown and the rising talent of Douglas Erasmus and Jarred Crous are sure to make the host nation proud.
The local ladies side will feature Nathania van Niekerk, Rebecca Meder and Hanim Abrahams in the pool events, while Michelle Weber and Carmen le Roux will represent SA in the Open Water race.
Among the athletes competing from around the continent will be Angola’s Ana Nobrega, a formidable swimmer who holds the National records in the 50, 100 and 200m butterfly, as well as the 50 and 100m freestyle, with the latter having been broken as recently as the 2016 Rio Olympic Games.
Joining Nobrega will be Algeria’s Amel Melih and Souad Nefissa Cherouati, with Melih holding the National records in the 50 and 100m backstroke.
Looking forward to swim against Chad le Clos will be Algeria’s Lounis Khendriche, the bronze medalist in the 200m butterfly race at the 2016 Geneva International Challenge, while James Lawson, Zimbabwe’s National record holder in the 100m breaststroke, will take on Van der Burgh.
The heats will begin at 10h00, while the finals will start at 16h00 daily, with the Open Water races taking place at the Maselspoort Dam in Bloemfontein from 08h00 on October 23.
– Guardian
