A mom’s joy and a son’s leap of faith
RUSWAHL Samaai’s mother did not watch him clinch a bronze medal in the long jump at the Commonwealth Games.
It was only a day later, at lunchtime, when a fellow factory worker showed her a video clip on a cellphone, that Minnie Samaai saw her 22-year-old son leap to a third place in Glasgow.
It was an emotional moment for the single mother of four from Paarl, near Cape Town, who almost found herself on the streets just four months ago.
She had been evicted from the shack the family had called home for 15 years. But she kept this from her son, who was focusing on his athletics training and studies at the University of Johannesburg.
“We do not have DStv, but he phoned me to say, ‘Mommy, I am on my way to the track.’ I prayed for him and I knew he would be fine. My best friend made a video of his performance on TV and when she showed me it felt as if I was there with him,” said Minnie.
Ruswahl’s sister, Shivani, 18, said he had become an inspiration to the community.
“Our [late] great-grandmother was so fond of him that she let him have his own shack opposite ours. He put posters on the wall to keep himself motivated. One read ‘Olympics 2016. I will be there’.
“He took those posters when he moved to Johannesburg. In April, we moved in with my uncle in a one-bedroom flat. We are so blessed,” she said.
When Ruswahl was told about the family’s eviction, he lifted his mother’s spirits by telling her, “Mommy, this is our year.”
His leap of 8.08m in Glasgow on July 30 was his first international medal and even earned him a Wikipedia page. He has not yet returned to South Africa. He has been training in Italy and will compete in the African Championships in Athletics in Morocco, which start today. He is due home only in September.
Before moving to Johannesburg, Ruswahl had to walk several kilometres through a local gangland to the athletics track at Dal Josafat Stadium in Paarl.
“My faith carried me in my career. God gave me a talent and I have to make use of it. That’s why I didn’t fall into the trap of drugs or gangsterism. I have a lot of support from my family, friends and my high school, Paarl Gymnasium,” he said.
Both Ruswahl and Shivani paid tribute to their mother, whom they regard as their role model. “I really do not know how my mother did it,” said Ruswahl. “All these years she has been the sole provider, yet we never went to bed hungry. There was always something to eat, even if it was just baked beans.”
Paarl Gymnasium coach Raymond Julius attributed Ruswahl’s success to discipline and diligence. “With the right nurturing and management he will be among the best in the world.”
After matriculating in 2010, Ruswahl worked at a factory with a friend, Geraldo Cleophas.
“There were times when Rus wanted to give up,” said Cleophas. “He is just an ordinary guy who had nothing, but he was determined to change that.
“I always say to him he is going to jump out of these difficult circumstances — jump out of a hokkie [shack] and into a double-storey house.”