Weekend Argus (Saturday Edition)
Wrestler dedicates bronze medal to late dad
A 17-YEAR-OLD girl from Panorama, Cape Town, likes to dress up and wear make-up but she is also making waves in the amateur wrestling scene.
Jessica-Ann Bester won the bronze medal in the women’s Under 20 U57kg division at the African Continental Championships in Egypt, which took place from March 14 to 19.
The plucky Grade 11 pupil at Edgemead High School said she dedicated her third place performance to her father Hayward, who died last year.
“Things haven’t been easy during the last few months but I pushed through and I am glad of what I have achieved.
“Credit should also go to my mother Magda, coaches, friends and family for all their support,” she said.
The Parow Wrestling Club wrestler described the competition as nerve-racking. However, she enjoyed every moment in Egypt.
“My coaches always had my back. I loved the team-building and experiencing the different types of foods (from another country),” she said.
Jessica-Ann was introduced to the sport at age 4 by her brother James, but only joined a few years later.
“I always watched my brother (at competitions) and fell in love with the sport. Wrestlers are some of the toughest people I know.
“The fact that we push through the pain is the best part (of the sport),” said Jessica-Ann, who has been a regular in the Western Province wrestling team and she finished her WP coaches grading exam in 2022.
Magda said she was proud of what her daughter had accomplished.
“She lost her father in August last year but she never let that put her down. I believe he would have said ‘job well done my, girl’.”