Sam sets tough Commonwealth medal target

TEAM South Africa at the Commonwealth Games oozes talent, but even these stars will struggle to match the target of 43 medals at Glasgow 2014.

To reach that dream every single medal hope will have to perform at their best — and history says that is unrealistic.

SA Sports Confederation and Olympic Committee president Gideon Sam predicted 12 medals from the London Olympics in 2012, and he had to settle for six.

In Scotland he wants Team SA to claim their second-best Commonwealth haul of all time — three short of the record 46 gongs from Manchester 2002.

He’s also insisting the SA team maintain their fifth place on the medals table from Delhi 2010 and Melbourne 2006.

Overall ranking is dependent on gold medals, and that is why Sam is demanding 15. But that feat has been achieved only once by SA— 60 years ago. The 1954 squad won 16 at the Vancouver Games.

SA’s fifth place at the past two Games was secured with 12 golds, but lower-ranked rivals like Kenya, Jamaica, Nigeria and hosts Scotland are nipping at their heels.

Team SA, with 187 competitors, are the eighth-largest contingent in Glasgow, behind England (424), Australia (417), Scotland (305), Canada (265), New Zealand (231), Wales (227) and India (221).

The British teams might just thrive in the Scottish weather which greet- ed Team SA with sunshine on Thursday. But by yesterday rain clouds had laid siege to the sky to force SA’s flagraising ceremony indoors; it was moved into the pub at the athletes village.

The cold and wet conditions didn’t dampen SA’s spirit, but that could change by the time battle commences on Thursday.

A dry field would benefit the Blitzbokke, one of SA’s golden hopes.

That’s one gold possibility. The other 14? As of yesterday, athletics and swimming, SA’s two most successful sports, boasted a combined five No 1 Commonwealth rankings.

Chad Le Clos is favourite in the 100m and 200m butterfly, the two events in which he is the world champion, and he has the potential to strike gold in the 200m individual medley.

But even he admits he is unlikely to successfully defend his 400m IM title.

Roland Schoeman is tops in the 50m fly and, on the track, Willem Coertzen

Even if all the stars convert, Team SA will still be seven short of 15 gold gongs

is the highest-ranked decathlete and Cornel Fredericks is the leading 400m hurdler.

Cameron van der Burgh is ranked second and third in the 50m and 100m breaststroke, but has the po- tential to reap two golds, as he did four years ago.

That’s assuming Van der Burgh has recovered from the recent slump he suffered, apparently the result of overtraining.

Even if all these stars convert, Team SA will still be seven short of 15 gold.

Sunette Viljoen, looking for a third Games javelin crown, will have to recapture her form from two years ago if she is to overhaul her two more fancied Australian rivals.

Young Wayde van Niekerk is an outside shot at the 400m gold, and Zarck Visser has a chance in the long jump. Other sporting codes have traditionally been good for gold, such as lawn bowls (three in 2010) and shooting and boxing (one apiece in 2006).

Cyclist Nolan Hoffman, judoka Jacques van Zyl, triathlete Richard Murray and others are critical to Sam’s ambitions.

It’s going to be tough.