Curro Rivonia swimmer Drew Hinchliffe shines with five-medal haul at EGA Senior Winter Championships

Fifteen-year-old Drew Hinchliffe made a name for himself at the Eastern Gauteng Aquatics (EGA) Senior Winter Championships, returning home with five medals.

Held at St Benedict’s College on August 22 and 23, Hinchliffe claimed gold in the 400m freestyle, 200m butterfly and 200m backstroke, silver in the 50m backstroke and bronze in the 100m backstroke.

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According to Hinchliffe, his best performance came in the 400m freestyle, a race he had been dreading, even though he managed to drop nearly 13 seconds from his personal best.

He is equally proud of his 200m butterfly victory, where he battled closely with another 15-year-old swimmer. “I was neck and neck with the other 15-year-old all the way through, but I managed to get ahead right at the end,” he said.

Early start to swimming career

Hinchliffe was just 14 months old when he first started swimming, initially because his parents wanted him to have the confidence and ability to get himself out of difficulty should he ever fall into a swimming pool.

Swimming remained something he enjoyed until Grade 1 in 2017, when he began training with his current coach, George du Rand. He has been training with him ever since, swimming for the Virgin Active Chad le Clos Academy.

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A keen footballer as well as a swimmer, Hinchliffe eventually had to make a choice between the two sports in Grade 7. “I had to make a decision between football and swimming and realised that my talents were more suited to swimming, so I’ve been fully committed to the sport ever since then.”

His first competitive gala came in 2022 at the Level 2 CGA Championships, where a medal win convinced him to take his swimming career further.

Since then, he has progressed from level 2 to level 3 and has competed at provincial and regional galas.

“My goal at every gala is to aim for personal bests, which I achieved in all my races at the EGA Senior Winter Champs except for the 100m backstroke and 100m butterfly,” said Hinchliffe. “I was also aiming to qualify for the SA National Short Course Championships in September but I didn’t make any of the qualifying times.”

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Eyes set on future goals

Balancing schoolwork and training can be hard, but Hinchliffe praised his coach for being a source of support and inspiration. “My friends at swimming also help to push me to achieve my best.”

Looking ahead, Hinchliffe has ambitious goals for the remainder of 2026. He hopes to secure the South African National Junior Age Group Championships qualifying time by the end of the year and will compete at the Curro Elite Gala in Durban in early October.

He is also looking forward to the EGA Long Course Championships in December, where he hopes to match or improve on his performance at the winter championships.

“I’d also like to qualify for the National Championships in 2028, and I’m aiming to get a swimming scholarship with an American university.”

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