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Top 5 South African sporting moments of 2024

The 2024 calendar year of sport was memorable for a variety of reasons in South Africa, from Rugby Championship and Olympic glory, to near misses in soccer and cricket.

We looked back on the past 12 months of South African sport and picked out the top five moments from 2024.

Springboks clinch rugby championship title

The Springboks reclaimed the Rugby Championship title in 2024 with a commanding win over Argentina in Nelspruit in September.

Led by standout performances from Aphelele Fassi and Pieter-Steph du Toit, a clinical display saw the Boks ease to a 48–7 victory.

A strong first half set the tone, with four tries settling any pre-match nerves for the Boks, who finished their campaign with a superb record of five wins and just one defeat.

Ending the year at the top of the world rugby rankings, the Springboks have cemented their status as the best team in the world.

Last year’s dominant rugby championship victory – finishing eight points clear of the All Blacks – suggests the South Africans could be a dominant force for years to come.

Dricus du Plessis retains UFC middleweight title

Dricus du Plessis delivered one of the highlights of the South African sporting year with a sensational defence of his UFC middleweight title at UFC 305.

Facing one of MMA’s greatest fighters of the past twenty years, Israel Adesanya, Du Plessis shocked the world by becoming the first to submit the Nigerian-born star with a rear naked choke hold in round four.

Du Plessis dropped a retreating Adesanya with consecutive right hooks, swiftly taking his back and locking in a rear-naked choke hold. Adesanya tapped out, ending the fight at 00:03:38 in the fourth round.

In a bout billed as a ‘Battle for Africa’, Du Plessis claimed bragging rights for South Africa with a performance that stands out as one of the finest in the sport in 2024.

Improving Bafana Bafana takes bronze at the Africa Cup of Nations

South Africa delivered one of their best performances in recent memory by securing a third-place finish at the Africa Cup of Nations last February.

Bafana Bafana edged past DR Congo in a dramatic penalty shootout after a hard-fought goalless draw.

Led by head coach Hugo Broos, the South Africans scored a stunning group-phase win against World Cup semi-finalists Morocco, before a painful penalty shootout exit against Nigeria in the last four.

The South Africans have since built on their impressive performance in the Ivory Coast by maintaining an unbeaten streak across 13 matches this year.

Tatjana Schoenmaker’s Olympic glory

Tatjana Schoenmaker delivered a fairytale ending to her illustrious swimming career at the Paris Olympics.

Cementing her place as South Africa’s most decorated Olympian in history, Schoenmaker clinched gold in the women’s 100m breaststroke, her signature event, before adding silver in the 200m breaststroke to cap off a spectacular summer for the 27-year-old.

Following her final race at the games, Schoenmaker announced her retirement from competitive swimming, bringing down the curtain on an extraordinary career on the highest stage.

She had previously claimed Olympic glory in Tokyo in 2020, picking up a gold in the 200m breaststroke and a silver in the 100m breaststroke.

The popular Johannesburg native was also honoured to serve as one of South Africa’s flag-bearers during the closing ceremony in Paris.

The Proteas’ cricket resurgence

South African cricket experienced something of a renaissance in 2024 as the Proteas delivered a series of impressive performances, highlighted by their historic campaign at the T20 World Cup.

Going unbeaten through the group stage, the South Africans performed with class and quality throughout the competition before falling narrowly to India in a dramatic final in Barbados.

In a see-saw battle in front of a capacity crowd in Barbados, a stirring finale saw the South Africans fall just seven runs short of a first-ever T20 World Cup triumph.

Still, the future looks bright for the Proteas, with players like Marco Jansen, Kagiso Rabada, and Tabraiz Shamsi forming a strong core that promises to keep South Africa competitive on the global stage in the coming years.

At Caxton, we employ humans to generate daily fresh news, not AI intervention. Happy reading!
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