Banyana star kicks off for Rio
BANYANA Banyana midfielder Robyn Moodaly was among the first batch of South African sports stars that headed out to Rio on Saturday to compete at the 2016 Olympic Games.
Moodaly has already been to the London Olympics and expects the 2016 Games to be even more exciting.
“The feeling when you wear your national colours and parade around the stadium on opening night is something that will remain etched in my mind forever.
“While London was great, I expect the Rio games to be more exciting as the people there know how to party,” said Moodaly.
Moodaly, who was born in East London and moved to Gauteng at a young age, said: “My dad was into soccer and I played with the neighbourhood boys. Back then there was no female soccer team, so I joined Luso Africa boys team, where I honed my skill as a midfield player. My main strengths are dribbling and getting the team to move forward.”
She said she never dreamt that what she regarded as a hobby would take her into the international sporting spotlight.
Moodaly has been a member of the national set-up for the past six years. Her prowess as a soccer player has helped open many doors for her, including a sports bursary from Ohio State University, where she is studying Sports Management.
She said the spirit in the Banyana camp was amazing.
“Besides the camaraderie that exists on the field, we have been at camp for a long time now and we also get on well off the field.”
She will be in action tomorrow (Thursday) when the team plays a warm-up match against New Zealand.
Thereafter it’s down to action. Banyana Banyana are in Group E. They play Sweden on August 3, then China and hosts Brazil in their final group-stage match.
Moodaly said the team were hoping to go all the way, and while playing to win would be uppermost in her mind, she was also looking foward to taking in some of the sights of Brazil.
“My room-mate at university in Ohio is from Brazil and she promised to hook up with me after the Games,” said Moodaly.
In a press release issued by Safa, Banyana Banyana coach Vera Pauw said it had been a “long and hard journey”, since the squad gathered for its first camp in November last year.
“I must admit we have had one of the best preparations, where we faced, among others, the world’s top-ranked national team, the USA – what more can we ask for?
“We have to thank Safa for all the efforts in making sure we are well prepared for the Olympics, not forgetting our proud sponsors Sasol and our partner National Lotteries-Commission,” said Pauw.