Kemptonian selected for the 2019 Netball World Cup
'The issue is that some of us in my team are not assured that we’ll be able to compete in the World Cup because the action sports industry is so small'
Kemptonian Cedric Strydom (25) yearns to compete in the 2019 Netball World Cup tournament in Paarl, Cape Town, and is humbly seeking sponsorship.
The tournament will commence on August 1 and countries expected to be represented alongside South Africa are England, Australia and New Zealand.
Strydom is a player in the national mixed A team and said he was a Jack of all trades when it came to competing in different positions in a netball game. He prefers playing with male counterparts as “the men’s playing pace is hectic, where the physical contact is almost like rugby”. However, he commends his fellow female players, saying: “We have practice runs with the national men’s team and the girls play circles around them. Those guys often don’t know how to handle them.”
Strydom’s netball journey ensued six years ago when he and his brother started playing just for fun. His mother, Heila Strydom, is an English teacher and netball coach and it’s apparent that it is a true passion in their lives. As time progressed and the action netball teams saw his potential, he progressively played formally as he was frequently requested for emergency replacements.
By day Strydom is a lighting technician for a company that specialises in sound and light engineering and stage construction. Although he enjoys his working hours in the entertainment industry, his future aspirations lean more towards his passion for netball.
He aspires to create more exposure for action sports in terms of tournaments and competitions, in the hope of creating more opportunities for it, especially for the sake of men’s netball to become more mainstream.
“The issue is that some of us in my team are not assured that we’ll be able to compete in the World Cup because the action sports industry is so small. The lack of sponsorship in general is a problem,” said Strydom. He said sponsors would surely be able to benefit from this World Cup, as he’s sure many will come from all over the world to support and be able to see sponsoring brands.
So far he has managed to collect R4 000. However, he would need R18 000 to cover the World Cup package that includes accommodation, travel and food expenses.
Contact Strydom at cedricstrydom1994@gmail.com or call him on 082 316 3360 to donate to his dream of joining the 2019 Netball World Cup.
