Team SA set for Youth Games

South Africa will send a team of 61 athletes to compete in the 2008 Commonwealth Youth Games to be held in Pune, India from October 12-18.

The team announced by the South African Sports Confederation and Olympic Committee (SASCOC) on Tuesday, will compete in athletics, badminton, boxing, shooting, swimming, table tennis, tennis, weightlifting and wrestling.

This will be the third Commonwealth Youth Games. The first event was held in Edinburgh in 2000, followed by Australia where Team South Africa finished third on the medal table, with 56 medals (20 gold, 18 silver and 18 bronze) behind hosts Australia (129 medals) and England (86 medals).

Pune 2008 is the first Youth Games to which all 71 Commonwealth countries have been invited to take part with 351 medals to be won across the nine nine sports. Each country has been allocated a fixed number of places in each code.

SASCOC will send full teams from athletics, badminton, boxing, shooting, swimming, table tennis, tennis and weightlifting. The competition caters for athletes between the ages of 14 to 18 yrs of age.

The team leaves South Africa on October 9, and will return on October 20.

The final team: Track and Field (men): Patrick Vosloo (Gauteng) 100m / 200m; Sityhilo Diko (Eastern Cape) 5000m; Cornel Fredericks (Boland) 110m hurdles; Willem Voigt (South Western Districts) High jump; Ulrich Damon (Western Cape) Javelin; Hendrik Maartens (Gauteng) 400m; Stefan Brits (Gauteng) long jump; Boipelo Rakola Motlhatlhego (Gauteng) triple jump, Folavia Sehohle (Gauteng) 1500m, Cheyne Rahme (Gauteng) pole vault, Stephen Brink (North West) shot put; Windy Jonas (Free State) 800m/1500m.

Women - Alyssa Leigh-Ann Conley (Gauteng) 100m/200m; Susanna Potgieter (Free State) 100m hurdles; Elzaan Mostert (Western Cape) shot put; Maria Badenhorst, (Free State) hammer throw; Sonja Van der Merwe (Western Cape) 400m; Bevin Smith (Gauteng) 100m/200m, Sylvia Tshetlanyana (Gauteng) 3000m; Mokgadi Semenya (Limpopo) 800m/1500m.

Management: Teboho William Dithuge (Free State), manager, Luxmichund Gordhan (KwaZulu-Natal) coach, Elsie Wilhelmina de Beer (KwaZulu-Natal) coach,

Badminton: (Men's singles and doubles) Jacob Maliekal (KwaZulu-Natal), Reinard Louw (Free State). (Women's singles and doubles) Candice-Leigh Mann (Gauteng), Deborah-Ray Godfrey (Western Cape). Management: Johannes Kleingeld (Free State), coach

Boxing: Tankiso Makhetha (Gauteng) 51kg flyweight; Xolani Mpushe (Eastern Cape) 54kg bantamweight; Alexander Jonker (North West) 64kg welterweight. Management: Nkosinathi Hlatshwayo (KwaZulu-Natal), coach/manager Johannes Britz (Gauteng), coach.

Shooting: Philip Von Ziegler (Gauteng) Olympic double trap, Jacobus Petrus Snyman (North West) 10m air rifle; Bianca Bekker (Gauteng ) 10m air rifle. Management: Timothy Swanton (Gauteng) manager/coach.

Swimming (Women): Oneida Cooper (Gauteng) 50m backstroke / 100m backstroke, / 50m butterfly / 100m butterfly / 4 x 100m freestyle relay / 4 x 200m freestyle relay / 4 X 100 Medley Relay; Natasha de Vos (Limpopo) 50m backstroke / 100m backstroke / 200m backstroke / 4 x 100m freestyle relay / 4 x 200m freestyle relay / 4 x 100m medley relay; Dominique Dryding (Western Cape) 200m butterfly / 200m freestyle / 4 x 100m freestyle relay / 4 x 100m medley relay / 4 x 20m freestyle relay; Natalie Elpick (Durban) 50m freestyle / 100m freestyle / 4 x 100m freestyle relay / 2 x 200m freestyle relay / 4 X 100m Medley Relay; Robyn Ferguson (Western Cape) 50m breaststroke / 100m breaststroke / 200m breaststroke / 4 x 100m freestyle relay / 4 x 200m freestyle relay / 4 x 100m medley relay; Jessica Liss (Eastern Cape) 50m breaststroke / 100m breaststroke / 200m breaststroke / 200m individual medley / 200m butterfly / 4 x 100m medley relay / 4 x 100m freestyle relay / 4 x 200m freestyle relay; Megan Scott (Gauteng) 50m freestyle / 100m freestyle / 50m butterfly / 100m butterfly / 4 x 100m freestyle relay / 4 x 200m freestyle relay / 4 x 100m medley relay; Karlien van Heerden (Gauteng) 200m freestyle / 200m backstroke / 200m individual medley / 4 x 100m freestyle relay / 4 x 200m freestyle relay / 4 x 100m medley relay. (Men): Lyle Peter Aloile (Western Cape) 100m freestyle / 200m freestyle / 50m breastroke / 4 x 100m freestyle relay / 4 x 200m freestyle relay / 4 x 100m medley relay; Warren Karsten (Gauteng) 50m breaststroke / 100m breaststroke / 200m breaststroke / 4 x 100m freestyle relay / 4 x 200m freestyle relay / 4 x 100m medley relay; Chad le Clos (KwaZulu Natal) 100m breaststroke / 200m breaststroke / 200m butterfly / 200m individual medley / 4 x 100m freestyle relay / 4 x 200m freestyle relay / 4 x 100m medley relay; Kristopher Matulovich (Gauteng) 50m freestyle / 100m freestyle / 200m freestyle / 50m butterfly / 100m butterfly / 4 x 100m freestyle relay / 4 x 200m freestyle relay / 4 x 100m medley relay ; Darren Murray (Gauteng) 50m backstroke / 100m backstroke / 200m backstroke / 4 x 100 freestyle relay / 4 x 200m freestyle relay / 4 x 100m medley relay. Suvir Satyendra (KwaZulu Natal) 200m butterfly / 4 x 100m freestyle relay / 4 x 200m freestyle relay / 4 x 100 medley relay; Charl van Zyl (KwaZulu Natal) 50m backstroke / 100m backstroke / 200m backstroke /200m Individual Medley /4 x 100m freestyle relay/ 4 x 200m freestyle relay/ 4 x 100m medley relay; Pierre Wirth (Gauteng) 50m freestyle / 50m butterfly / 100m butterfly / 4 x 100m medley relay / 4 x 100m freestyle relay / 4 x 200m freestyle relay.

Management: Queeneth Ndlovu, (Gauteng) manager, Cedric Finch (Western Cape)coach, Petro Nortje (KwaZulu Natal) coach.

Table Tennis (Men singles and doubles): Kurt Lingeveldt (Western Cape), Cody Meyer (Western Cape). (Women Singles and Doubles): Khanyisile Madlala (Gauteng North) Zodwa Maphanga (Gauteng North). Management: Audrina McDonald (Gauteng) manager, Xuexing Zhou (Gauteng) coach.

Tennis (Men singles and doubles): Hendrik Coertzen (Free State), David Fisher (Eastern Cape), Women singles and doubles): Anastacia Simons (Western Cape) Monica Gorny (KwaZulu Natal).

Weightlifting (Men): Zayanda Mjezu (Western Cape) 58kg; Matshidiso Masiu (Gauteng) 63kg, Minikhaya Ngwele (Western Province) 62kg; Sean Anthony (Gauteng) 77kg; Jean Greeff (Gauteng) 85kg. Management: Aveenash Pandoo (Western Province) manager/coach.

Wrestling: Christo Lottering (Mpumalanga), Ebrahim Henstock (Gauteng). Management: Willie Bosse (Western Cape) coach, The team will be supported by SASCOC team management: Sylvia Dale (Chef de Mission), Tubby Reddy (Project Manager) Dr Harold Adams (Chief Medical Officer), Merike Hopkins (Chief Physiotherapist) and support staff. - Sapa