Doonside para surfer places third in SA Champs
Despite being completely blind by the age of 18, the para surfer has never let it get in the way of achieving his sporting aspirations.
STORM Schwartz, a blind surfer from Doonside, received third place at the Made For More: TyreLife Solutions SA Para Surfing Champs recently held at New Pier in Durban.
Stor (32) was diagnosed with Retinitis Pigmentosa (RT) when he was 10 years old. “It’s a degeneration of the retina where you lose light perception and vision, and by the age of 18, I went completely blind,” he said.
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Storm said he tries not to let being blind hinder him from achieving things. “I am a confident person, with a fantastic family who support and encourage me to do my best. I have the necessary technology to help and equip me with what is going on in the world.
“It is through people who have encouraged me to do things to the best of my ability, as well as those who saw the potential in me, that I’ve been able to accomplish sport participation,” he said.
Storm was excited to receive third place in the All Inclusive Prone Men division as well as a spot on the podium. He added, “I train at home with 5kg dumbbells, do core and cardio exercises, and have surf training sessions with Made For More. The event was absolutely world-class, well-organised and made possible with humble, caring and dedicated coaches, volunteers, Made For More staff and, of course, the surfers.”
He has been surfing for three years and has also just recently participated in his 90th Parkrun. He said, “I don’t do any other sports, however, I have played blind cricket for KZN and taken part in TinMan and CrossFit Training.”
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The event was organised and hosted by Made For More, a non-profit organisation (NPO) and a public benefit organisation (PBO) that aims to include, empower and equip people with disabilities through sports and mental health programmes.
“It is our biggest joy and privilege to host the country’s best adaptive surfers and to witness the sport growing year by year. Each year, the vibe on the beach grows, the smiles get bigger and the passion, skill and dedication of the athletes more palpable. For us, it’s so much more than just surfing; it’s access, it’s inclusion, it’s opportunity and mostly, it’s belonging,” said Made For More founder Julia van Zyl.
Fifty surfers, 34 men and 16 women, competed from four provinces around the country. In the end, it was the home province KwaZulu-Natal that took top honours, with Western Cape in second and Eastern Cape and Gauteng in third and fourth respectively.
From this national event, the South African team will be selected by Surfing South Africa to go to the ISA World Para Surfing Championships in Pismo Beach, California in the United States of America in December.
For more information, visit their Facebook page Made For More.
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