Retired Olympic Champ Tatjana Smith Returning for Short-Course Champs

Retired Olympic Gold Medalist Tatjana Smith Returns for Short-Course Champs

Retired South African Olympic gold medalist Tatjana Smith is returning to the water for this month’s South African Short-Course Championships.

Smith, who additionally competed below her maiden identify Tatjana Schoenmaker early in her profession, retired after the Paris Olympics wherein she gained gold within the girls’s 100 breaststroke and silver within the 200 breast. She had performed the other – gold in a world report within the 200 breast and silver within the 100 breast – on the Tokyo Olympics three years earlier. But the 29-year-old will probably be again competing when the nation’s high abilities take the water Sept. 24-27 in Pietermaritzburg.

“We’re very excited that Tatjana is coming back to swimming,” Swimming SA Head of High Performance Dean Price mentioned in a press release. “We know Tatjana is an excellent racer, so you can really count on her in a big event. I think she’ll be a huge addition to our team, and I think not only in the individual, but I think she can be of great value in the relays as well. … We look forward to her competing in her first event, and we feel very confident that she’s going to do very well.”

The nationwide championships is aimed toward deciding on a group for the World Short Course Championships, which will probably be held in December in Beijing.

Smith has been coaching with a brand new group, referred to as Lane Leader, in Stellenbosch. She provides a veteran presence to a bunch that features a few remaining holdovers from that Tokyo Olympic squad.

“There’s a lot that I can say about Tatjana that we already know,” veteran male breaststroker Michael Houlie mentioned. “She’s a phenomenal swimmer, but more importantly, she looks like a happy swimmer right now. And that could be dangerous for everyone else, so the world better watch out. She has absolutely nothing left to prove, which means she has the opportunity to race completely free and just enjoy swimming again. We were national teammates for so many years, so on a personal level, it’s just really great to have her back.”

The return comes at an advanced second for South African swimming. Smith just lately got here forth with allegations that Swimming South Africa had delayed fee of prize cash relationship again to early in her profession. Per stories in another country, that has been paid with interest. SSA’s president and CEO have been suspended, nonetheless, whereas World Aquatics investigates potential violations of its ethics code regarding unspecified issues.

Houlie is coming off a profitable summer season wherein he competed at each the Commonwealth Games and Pan Pacific Championships. He will compete within the 50 and 100 breast and the 50 freestyle.

Dune Coetzee is competing in her dwelling pool, having just lately relocated to Pietermaritzburg to coach at Seals Swimming Club. She’s entered in eight occasions. Commonwealth Games rivals like Hannah Pearse, Georgia Nel, Guy Brooks and Chris Smith are additionally entered within the meet, which is able to embody paraswimming competitors.