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The Stellenbosch University Choir and the South African senior street dance group won gold medals in their respective competitions.
Gold medalists: The Stellenbosch University Choir and the SA street dance group. Pictures: stellenboschuniversity_choir/Instagram and @GautengSACR (X)
Someone joked that each week, South Africa is announced as a champion in a particular sporting code or a Mzansi citizen shines on a world stage.
The Stellenbosch University Choir and South Africa’s senior street dance group are the latest to make their mark internationally.
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Stellenbosch University Choir
The Stellenbosch University Choir earned three gold medals earlier this month at the Interkultur European Choir Games and Grand Prix of Nations 2025 competition in Aarhus, Denmark.
Held from 28 June to 6 July, the international choir competition saw 132 choirs from 33 countries competing in various categories.
The Stellenbosch University Choir was invited to participate in the Grand Prix of Nations and was the only choir representing South Africa and Africa.
Longstanding conductor of the Stellenbosch University Choir, André van der Merwe, said he was proud of the students.
“They sing in the choir for the love of singing. And our marks of above 95% for all three categories are an incredible compliment at an international level. I am such a proud choir master,” said Van der Merwe on the university’s website.
Van der Merwe has been with the choir since 2003.
“When I look back on how we performed this week, I would not change anything, because it was both an amazing experience and an amazing learning opportunity,” said choir member and Stellenbosch University student Lambert Tuyishime.
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Street Dance champions
In another proud moment for the country, the South African senior street dance group won a gold medal in the Street Dance category at the 2025 Dance World Cup, in Burgos, northern Spain.
In this global dance competition, 50 countries were competing, with each country having only four spots available per age group and genre at the World Finals.
South Africa won with a final score of 95.7%.
Dance World Cup participants must qualify through the qualifier held in the country where their dance school is located to attend the DWC Finals.
Dance schools in countries that host a DWC qualifier can only apply to enter the DWC Finals through their respective country’s qualifier.
The World Cup came to a close on Saturday with the South Africans returning home on Monday.
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