Gliding to glory

The Special Olympic World Games is a well-known event where more than 3.5 million athletes with intellectual disabilities in 227 states and national programs participate while offering over 50 000 sports competitions annually.

Six talented skaters from the West Rand have been selected to represent South Africa (SA) in the World Games taking place in Turin, Italy, and have begun their training sessions to prepare for the big competition on March 8.

The team consists of four figure skaters, Kenneth Mokabo, Naledi Hlalele, Bianca Basson, and Tyrell Fykes, followed by two speed skaters, Shirnel Swarts and Shane Bentley.

The team’s head coaches, Glenda Slabber and Victor Vezi, gathered the athletes to train at the Northgate Ice Rink to polish their routines and work on additional skills, which will be judged based on the points received. Speed skaters Shane and Shirnel worked on their timing and speed together as skaters must keep their own course, while the figure skaters perfected their routines.

” The athletes will be competing against a variety of other countries who will be working just as hard as they do, so we make it a top priority to encourage the skaters to push themselves with their routines , but also be very proud of themselves and how far they have come,” said Glenda.

Speed skating coach Victor added that that race can be strategic to some degree, where the athlete’s speed and explosivity increase gradually.

“We make sure Shirnel and Shane skate against one another to improve their personal best times,” Victor adds.

Parents, guardians and their loved ones are rooting for the talented athletes, as their biggest goal is to achieve a gold medal in this prestigious international tournament.