The 14-year-old Katelyn Kotze from White River has jumped herself to glory, winning gold in the U15 long jump at the 2024 SA High School Track & Field Championships.

The championships were held at the Dal Josaphat Stadium in Paarl from April 4 to 6, with high school athletes from around the country representing their provinces. A total of 45 athletes from the Ehlanzeni District took part in the championships, representing Mpumalanga.

As with the ASA Junior and Youth Track & Field National Championships held in Pretoria in March, the Mpumalanga contingent did well over the course of the three-day competition. They brought back a total of 12 medals – two gold, four silver and six bronze.

Four of these medals were courtesy of Ehlanzeni athletes. Roland Stoltz of Curro Nelspruit earned himself a bronze medal in the boys U19 triple jump and Hoërskool Nelspruit’s David Botha won bronze in the boys U19 javelin.

Hoërskool Rob Ferreira’s Mthokozisi Ndlovu finished second in the boys U17 400m hurdles. While he did well at the high school champs, after the competition, the news broke that his time of 53.05s at the ASA Junior and Youth Track & Field National Championships in March made him the eighth-fastest 400m hurdler in the U18 age group in the world this season.

Finally, Ehlanzeni and Mpumalanga’s golden girl was young Katelyn Kotze, who at 14 managed to win herself a gold medal in the girls U15 long jump. Katelyn jumped 5.85m, and her parents Hilton and Tanya expressed their pride in her achievements.

“We are extremely proud of Katelyn! She has sacrificed so much for the sake of her athletics, missing school camps and going on early-morning training sessions during school holidays. She is proof that hard work and dedication leads to excellence, and we are proud to be her parents,” they said.

Katelyn is a Grade 9 learner of Uplands College in White River, where she is coached by Ryan McCarthy.