Young SA lifesavers excel in Germany

THERE was more medal delight for Team South Africa on day two of lifesaving’s German Cup, with teenage duo Calvin Coetzee and JP van Zyl adding to their opening day medal-winning efforts.

Kwazulu-natal’s Coetzee, just 17 years old, started the International German Cup in Warendorf with a gold medal in the 200m obstacle swim and yesterday won silver in the 100m Rescue Medley, ahead of Van Zyl, who added a bronze to two silver medals, the second of which he won in the 100m Manikin Carry with Fins.

Van Zyl’s first silver was in the 50m Manikin Carry.

Some of the sport’s finest teenage stillwater lifesaving athletes are on show at the German Cup and Coetzee and Van Zyl’s combined five medals (one gold, two silver and two bronze) reinforces the growing stature internationally of SA’S junior lifesavers, in the pool and also in the surf.

The criteria for the German Cup participation was that the athlete had to be under 18 and have placed individually in the top 10 across three events at the General Tire/lifesaving South African still water National Championships.

Van Zyl, Coetzee and Milan Erasmus, South Africa’s representation at the German Cup, will also represent Team South Africa at the Orange Cup in the Netherlands next weekend.

South Africa’s big guns in the Surf and Sand will be in New Zealand for next weekend’s International Surf Rescue Challenge featuring the sport’s eight best countries.

Kwazulu-natal’s Carmel Billson will lead the female challenge in a squad that also includes her very talented sister Lauren Billson.

Billson is the 2016 and 2017 General Tire Lifesaving SA female athlete of the Year.