2013 saw Kempton Park and its residents participate in great sporting events.
Here are just some of the sporting highlights that made 2013 a great sport year:
Bonaero’s 74’s soccer veterans continued last year’s great form when the second half of the season kicked off in January. They travelled to Edenvale to record their third consecutive 3-0 away win in the Easterns league.
Old-Springbok, Jannie de Beer, gave the Valke rugby team some pointers on kicking when their season began in January.
Lize-Mari de Beer (12) represented Laerskool Kruinsig and Mandeville Dolphins Swim Club at the Gauteng Schools Aquatics Championships in February. She claimed five gold and two silver medals. Lize-Mari was victorious in the U/13 age group in the 100m freestyle (1.04.84), 200m freestyle (2.21.38), 400m freestyle (4.56.38), 100m backstroke (1.16.52) and 200m backstroke (2.34.23). She came second in the 50m freestyle (30.70) and 50m backstroke (35.75).
The Valke Rugby Union’s signing of ex-Springbok wing, Jongi Nokwe, brought excitement to the camp of this fairly young team in February.
The perfect number remained 10, as a tale of two arch rival teams were told – that of the U/16 Red Sox of Kempton Park and IMPSof Edenvale. The Sox won the IMPS in February and their winning spree raised to 10.
Four local softball players were selected to represent South Africa at the ISF XIII Men’s World Softball Championship in Auckland, New Zealand, in February.
Brandon Bouillon (23) plays for Red Sox Baseball Club and Greg Barret (33), Richard Claassen (35) and Tyrone Young (42) for Normans Grill Fast Pitch Softball Club. Both clubs are based in Kempton Park.
Bowls player, Colleen Piketh, was crowned the South African masters singles champion in March when she beat the defending champion, Louise Roediger, at Wanderers Bowling Club.
David Maree from Tasol-solar energy won the Emperors Classic in April.
Maree crossed the line first in 2.13.26, just a split-second clear of Bonitas’s Chris Jennings, with Westvaal-BMC’s Shaun-Nick Bester a further second back.
Jordan du Plessis of Kempton Park, who attends Rynfield Primary School, took three golds at the South African Primary School Athletics Championships in Sasolburg against all nine provinces in April. Jordan won both the 80m and the 100m sprint finals. His U/10 relay team also took a gold medal by winning the 4 x 100m relay, breaking the SA record by over a second.
Van Riebeeck Park tennis player Chanel Simmonds was delighted with her first grand slam effort, despite the fact that she lost against a fellow South African in the US Open in New York in August.
Glen Campbell and his cycling partner, Joe van der Westhuizen, became the 2013 SA Tandem Road Champions in May.
Villa Fountain Football Club won the B league of the East Rand Industrial League in May. The team comprises members from the amalgamated companies Villa Corp Protection and Fountain Chemicals. They only joined the industrial league during the 2012/13 season and quickly moved to
being top of the B league.
Several Kempton Road Runners athletes took on this year’s Comrades marathon. The best achievers who received the Bill Rowan Medal were Riaan Riekert 07:42:17; Senzen Ngobeni 07:49:06; Vanessa Bowman 08:07:36; Jakobus de Jager 08:13:19; Johan van Staden 08:18:16; Vijandren Naidoo 08:55:48; Dumisani Majola 08:55:51; Anel Labuschagne 08:58:40 and David Molise 08:59:48. Michael Lovemore (14) from Birch Acres, was selected to represent South Africa at an international kickboxing tournament in Mauritius from July 17-25.
Local racing driver Riaan Venter did well in single-seater race cars in the Formula M Club Class B. He managed to take home the second place trophy at the Phakisa (Welkom) race on July 13.
Various members of all age groups from Ekurhuleni Kayak Club based at Homestead Dam in Benoni participated in race on the Crocodiles and Hippo of Rietvlei Dam, including Kempton Park’s Vincent Buttrick. He partnered with John Rowan in the same age group to win the Great Grand Master category prize, finishing in one hour 35 minutes.
Deon Coetzee (27) from Bonaero Park won his cruiser weight boxing fight against Emmanuel Manengi with a technical knock out in the first round at Presleys in Boksburg in August.
Hoërskool Kemptonpark and Dr EG Jansen from Boksburg first rugby teams faced each other in the Beeld-trophee final in August. The Jansies beat the Kempies 38-17.
Roston Dugmore (16), who flies for Barnstormers Club on the outskirts of the city, became the first official Junior World Champion at the 28th F3A World Championships for Aerobatic Model Aircraft held near Meyerton in August.
Gauteng’s ice hockey teams, which include various players from the three clubs based at Festival Mall, did well with a gold medal clean sweep across all divisions at the South African Ice Hockey Associations (SAIHA) annual inter-provincial tournaments in Cape Town.
A Kempton Park cricketer, Neil Stals (34), was selected for the South African indoor/action cricket team (over 30), which played in the world series tournament from October 20-26 at his home ground, the Sandton indoor cricket arena.
Carine Kloenne-Warren from Glen Marais won the women’s classic body building title when she took part in this year’s IFBB SA National Championship in Port Elizabeth.
Amanda Viljoen from Glen Erasmia accomplished two first places at the Easterns Lower Inter Regions show jumping championships at Kyalami Equestrian Club.
Norkem Park High’s first soccer team ended their long season by winning the Grey College/Nedbank Football Tournament in Bloemfontein at the end of September.
Frans Masedi from Kempton Panorama School was secelted for the Craven Week special schools first rugby team.
Jan Kruger of Aston Manor became the new world master 2 champion in the 125kg weight class in the Global Powerlifting Committee (GPC) world powerlifting championships in Hungary. The South African Wrestling Federation, in conjunction with Eastern Gauteng Wrestling Federation, hosted the 2013 Commonwealth Wrestling Championships in Kempton Park.
Sandile Caleb Ngcobo, wing of the senior Valke team, was selected for the emerging Springbok sevens team.
The fourth match of the KFC Mini-Cricket Kids vs Proteas Tour took place at Laerskool Edleen. The Edleners got to play against the likes of AB de Villiers and Morne Morkel.
So that concludes our birds eye view of 2013’s Kempton Park sporting highlights.
And we are sure to see some fantastic sport taking place in Kempton and Kempton delivering some incredible sports men and women in 2014.
