Semenya headlines stellar cast
THREE WORLD beaters in their respective codes will battle it out for the South African Sportswoman of the Year award at the annual prizegiving ceremony here at the weekend.
The three are spearheaded by middle-distance ace Caster Semenya, with rower extraordinaire Kirsten McCann and cycling queen Ashley Moolman-Pasio sharing the spotlight with her.
The SA Sports Awards are notorious for getting their nominees and winners horribly wrong but they managed to hit the nail on the head with the nomination of the country’s top women’s stars.
The trio have made it easy for the judges as their performances on the global stage speak for themselves.
Semenya has also been nominated for the People’s Choice Sports Star and Sports Star of the Year, which could provide some consolation after she was snubbed by the IAAF.
Her performances on tracks around the world have been unparalleled over the last two years where she has gone unbeaten in her specialist 800m, while adding a world 600m best at the end of the 2017 season.
Semenya raced to her third 800m title at the IAAF World Championships in London in August after she surprised with a 1,500m bronze medal.
The track phenom could win back-to-back SA Sportswoman of the Year honours but is up against stiff opposition in Moolman-Pasio and McCann.
McCann should make a strong challenge for the crown after she became South Africa’s first world rowing champion in a singles boat.
After winning the lightweight single sculls at the World Cup in Lucerne, McCann proved her grit by winning the world title in trying conditions in Sarasota, US.
Moolman-Pasio, a two-time Sportswoman of the Year winner, has been in the form of her life following a superb Rio Olympics where she claimed a top-10 place on the road. She regularly stepped onto the podium, including her second overall Giro del Toscana title in September.