When Shannon Gardiner tore her lateral meniscus ligament in her knee in 2019 during the South African Rhythmic Gymnastics Championships, she thought it was the end of her career as a gymnast. Until shortly before that setback, the former Cornwall Hill College student from Centurion was still dreaming of the Olympic Games in Japan, which were supposed to take place about eight months later in 2020. https://youtu.be/HjWpksgkZtI Meanwhile, the Tokyo Games have been postponed by a year and although she did get the chance to qualify for this sport spectacle, she just missed it. However, this past weekend Gardiner did fly to Japan to test herself against the world’s best. Although it’s not the Olympics, the fact that she was able to qualify for the world championships in Japan is for Gardiner an absolute miracle She believes it was through the guidance of God that she could get an appointment with the brilliant and well-known surgeon, dr. Eugene Pelser, very soon after the injury and that he could fit her into his busy schedule to operate on the knee.

The operation was a huge success, but she still had to learn how to walk, jump, leap and turn again long before she could think of returning to the gymnastics mat. Her progress was miraculous and in March last year she was ready to take part in the African Championship in Egypt with the hope of qualifying for the Tokyo Olympics after all. Unfortunately, she ended in fourth place overall due to a drop in her hoop routine and missed out on qualifying for Tokyo. Although Gardiner obviously wants to do as well as possible at the world championships in Japan, she will participate with a new philosophy of life. “My goal at the World Championship is to compete with high spirits realising we can rise above all problems we face. Then I want to do it for my country, God and myself,” she said shortly before her departure. After the championship she plans to stay in Europe for a while with her Bulgarian coach at Tuks, Nina Ervedosa, to prepare for next year’s Commonwealth Games in Birmingham. https://youtu.be/oJj-GNLDxEU Gardiner also realizes that, for various reasons, she does not have many years of participation left at the highest level. But that does not stop her from dreaming about the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris. After that, the professional world calls. For this she is also in the final phase of preparation. She has already completed her BCom (Law) degree at Tuks and is currently working on an LLB degree, which she will complete by the end of next year if everything goes according to plan.  

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