Local discus star claims gold at African Champs

Auckland Park resident and discus star Johan Scholtz claimed gold for South Africa at the 12th Confederation of African Athletics (CAA) African Junior Athletics Championships, which took place in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, from March 5 to 8.

Scholtz sailed ahead of his nearest rivals with a winning throw of 57.57m, outdistancing his previous personal best of 56.76m in the process.

“The weather was perfect and the crowd was amazing, cheering us on while we participated in our events,” he said.

The 18-year-old business management student at the University of Johannesburg (UJ) said it had been a privilege to be able to compete for his country at international level.

“I wasn’t familiar with my competitors and when we arrived at the stadium the adrenaline began to pump and I was a bit nervous.”

Scholtz, who hails from Pretoria, said it was soon clear that the athletes from Egypt would be his biggest challengers on the day.

“They are very competitive field athletes,” he said.

His predictions proved correct as that country’s Hassan Elshabrawy took silver with a distance of 54.74m, while fellow South African Jason van Rooyen rounded out the podium for a throw of 52.68m.

Scholtz previously represented South Africa at the 2013 International Amateur Athletics Federation (IAAF) Youth World Championships in Donetsk, Ukraine, where he placed 13th in his signature event.

He also scooped the gold medal at the African Union Sports Council U20 youth games in Zimbabwe, last year.

“My aspiration is to throw 60m by the end of the year, and then, like every athlete, my dream is to compete in the Olympic Games,” he said.