Five athletes ready to compete for Team SA at Winter Olympics

While the country has one of the smallest teams at the multi-sport showpiece, a record squad will represent South Africa at the Winter Olympic Games which starts in Italy on Friday.

With the nation competing at the Winter Olympics for the eighth time, the team includes five athletes, which is the largest SA squad to compete at the quadrennial Games. They will participate in four disciplines across various sports.

The two oldest members of the team – 35-year-old Matthew Smith (cross-country skiing) and 31-year-old Nicole Burger (skeleton) – will carry the SA flag at the opening ceremony on Friday.

The other three members of the team are 21-year-old Malica Malherbe (freestyle skiing), 18-year-old Lara Markthaler and 17-year-old Thomas Weir (both alpine skiing).

While Smith and Burger were both born in SA before moving overseas to pursue their elite careers, Malherbe (Canada), Markthaler (Germany) and Weir (Switzerland) were born in other countries.

All five athletes are set to make their Olympic debuts.

The SA delegation, which also includes four coaches, is led by three-time former Winter Olympian Alex Heath, the chef de mission.

Medal incentives

Though they are unlikely to secure the nation’s first Winter Olympics medal, the team have been offered significant incentives to step on the podium,

The SA Sports Confederation and Olympic Committee (Sascoc) announced ahead of the spectacle that gold medallists would earn R400,000, silver medallists would receive R200,000 and bronze medallists would get R75,000.

“Team South Africa has always competed with pride at the Winter Olympic Games. This edition we expect similar, in the pursuit for excellence,” said Sascoc chief executive Nozipho Jafta.

“We wish them every success and assure them that they have the support of the entire nation behind them. Beyond the quest for podium finishes, we hope that their representation of the country will inspire a lot more younger athletes to follow their dreams to one day be a part of the Winter Olympic Games.”

The 25th Winter Olympics, taking place in Milan and Cortina, officially opens on Friday, though three sports – curling, ice hockey and snowboarding – got underway earlier this week.

Over 2,800 athletes will represent 92 countries in eight sports at the showpiece which concludes on 22 February.