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One nation, one team: Support SA at the 2024 Paris Olympics

Bidvest, the official partner of Team SA, brings you all the latest news from #Paris2024

02 August 2024 - 22:03
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LATEST NEWS 

Simbine wins his Olympic medal as SA take 4x100m relay at Paris Games

The South African men have won silver in the 4x100m relay at the Paris Olympics, finishing second behind Canada in ...

By David Isaacson in Paris

Botswana 200m king Letsile Tebogo gets little sleep then stars in relay ...

Botswana sprint star Letsile Tebogo got to bed at 4am on Friday after winning the men’s 200m at the Paris Olympics the ...

By David Isaacson in Paris

Botswana’s Tebogo becomes first African man to win men’s 200m gold

Letsile Tebogo became the first African to win the Olympic 200m title on Thursday when he powered clear of American duo ...

By Mitch Phillips

SA’s Ashleigh Buhai shoots 68 to lie second in Olympic golf tournament

Ashleigh Buhai fired herself into early medal contention at the Paris Olympics on Wednesday, carding a four-under-par ...

By SPORT STAFF

Bride-to-be Julia surfs wedding ideas to stay calm in Olympic competition

Diver Julia Vincent stayed calm during the women’s 3m springboard preliminary diving competition at the Paris Olympics ...

By David Isaacson in Paris

Jo-Ane van Dyk, Brian Raats star in the field qualifying at Paris Olympics

Jo-Ane van Dyk gave the South African athletics squad a much-needed lift as she sent the javelin soaring to a life-time ...

By David Isaacson in Paris

Olympic schedule: South Africans in action on August 7

South Africans in action on day 12 of the Paris Olympics: Wednesday August 7

By David Isaacson in Paris

Benjamin Richardson ruled out of Olympics in blow to 4x100m relay

Benjamin Richardson is out of the Paris Olympics, delivering a major blow to the medal hopes of the men’s 4x100m relay ...

By David Isaacson in Paris

Benjamin Richardson withdraws from 200m, but no word on fitness for relay

Benjamin Richardson has been withdrawn from the 200m repechage round on Tuesday.

By David Isaacson in Paris

Inexperience costs Prudence Sekgodiso in Olympic 800m final

In the end inexperience cost Prudence Sekgodiso on the biggest stage of all as she finished eighth in the women’s 800m ...

By David Isaacson at Stade de France

What else is happening on day 10 of the Paris Games?

The Olympic Games are past the halfway point, with the swimming, tennis, archery, fencing and road cycling all drawing ...

By Simon Jennings

Prudence Sekgodiso gets spiked but cruises into Olympic 800m final

It was a great turn-around from the world championships in Budapest last year when Prudence Sekgodiso crashed out in ...

By David Isaacson at Stade de France

Olympics day 9 early wrap: Algeria’s Nemour makes history for Africa with ...

There were more medals won in the early action of Sunday's day 9 at the Paris Olympics

By Reuters

What else happening on day 9 of the Paris Games?

The curtain comes down on “Marchand mania” with the final swimming events at La Defense Arena on Sunday, just as the ...

By Simon Jennings

SA long-jumper hit by death threats, claims before Olympic competition

Long-jumper Jovan van Vuuren crashed out of the Paris Olympics on Sunday morning and then disclosed he had received ...

By David Isaacson in Paris

Brave Adriaan Wildschutt nails SA record; Prudence Sekgodiso advances

Adriaan Wildschutt ran a brave race as he stuck to the front of the men’s 10,000m at the Paris Olympics on Friday ...

By David Isaacson in Paris

Chad le Clos KO’ed early at Paris Olympics, but vows to keep swinging

The 32-year-old carried an injury coming into the gala.

By David Isaacson in Paris

SA hopes for more podiums in Paris

Prudence Sekgodiso and Adriaan Wildschutt are in action in Paris today as the Olympic focus shifts from swimming to ...

A record night of swimming’s greats in the Olympics pool

French poster boy Leon Marchand and US distance dynamo Katie Ledecky made history while the Paris pool saw its first ...

By Alan Baldwin

Team South Africa results at the Paris Olympics

Latest South African results from the Paris Olympics.

By David Isaacson in Paris

Gold for Tatjana Smith in Paris pool thriller

Tatjana Smith took the gold medal in the 2024 Paris Olympics women's 100m breastroke in the Paris La Defense Arena pool ...

By Sports Staff

Mountain-biker Alan Hatherly wins Olympic medal No 2 for South Africa

Mountain-biker Alan Hatherly has won South Africa’s second medal of the Paris Olympics, taking bronze in the ...

David Isaacson
Sports reporter

Olympic schedule: South Africans in action on August 2

South Africans in action at the Paris Olympics on July 29

David Isaacson
Sports reporter

POLL | What do you make of the Olympics opening act depicting ‘The Last ...

One of the acts in the opening ceremony of the Paris 2024 Olympics has sparked a massive global debate over what ...

By SowetanLIVE

Blitzboks win Olympic bronze beating Australia 26-19 in Paris

The Blitzboks will have to wait until Saturday evening to try win South Africa’s first medal of the Paris Olympics ...

David Isaacson
Sports reporter
Designed by Mr Price Sport, Team SA's Maxed Elite Olympic kit was inspired by SA landmarks, flora and fauna.
Image: Anton Geyser/Gallo Images Designed by Mr Price Sport, Team SA's Maxed Elite Olympic kit was inspired by SA landmarks, flora and fauna.

FIVE FAQS ABOUT THE 2024 PARIS OLYMPICS ANSWERED

When are the Paris Olympics?

You'd be forgiven for thinking the Games of the XXXIII Olympiad (aka the 2024 Paris Olympics) would kick off with the opening ceremony, which is scheduled for 7.30pm on July 26. However, the sporting events actually commence a few days earlier on July 24. The closing ceremony will take place on August 11 at 9pm.

How many Olympic sports is Team SA competing in?

A total of 150 local athletes are representing Mzansi at #Paris2024. They'll be competing in sports, including athletics, archery, badminton, canoeing, cycling, diving, fencing, gymnastics, hockey, rowing, rugby Sevens, sport climbing, surfing, swimming, triathlon and wrestling.

Where can I find the full schedule of Olympic events?

Visit the official Olympics website: https://olympics.com/en/paris-2024/schedule

Where can I watch the Paris Olympics in SA?

The Olympics will be broadcast on SABC: SABC 1, SABC 2, SABC 3, SABC + and; SABC Sports MultiChoice's SuperSport channels: Olympics 1 (DStv 203) Olympics 2 (DStv 204) Olympics 3 (DStv 205) Olympics 4 (DStv 206) Olympics 5 (DStv 207) Olympics 6 (DStv 208) Olympics Africa (DStv 209) Olympics News (DStv 217) and; Olympics SuperScreen (DStv 199)

Beyond the promise of gold medals and glory, are Team SA being motivated by any financial incentives?

Sascoc president Barry Hendricks announced that individual athletes who win a gold medal will be awarded R400,000, with their coach receiving R100,000. Silver medalists will earn R200,000 and their coaches R75,000. Bronze medal payouts will be R75,000 for the athletes and R25,000 for their coaches. For relays and team sports (hockey and rugby), each athlete will be awarded R100,000, R75,000, R50,000 for winning a gold, silver and bronze medal respectively, with the team's coach receiving the same amount. Payouts for rowers (two people per boat) are R200,000 per athlete for gold, R100,000 for silver and R50,000 for bronze. Rowing coaches will receive R100,000, R50,000 or R20,000 depending on whether their team wins gold, silver or bronze.
An original piece of iron from the Eiffel Tower forms the centrepiece of the 2024 Olympic and Paralympic medals.
Image: Olympics website/Press handout An original piece of iron from the Eiffel Tower forms the centrepiece of the 2024 Olympic and Paralympic medals.


WATCH TEAM SA IN ACTION: UPCOMING OLYMPIC EVENTS

Sunday August 11

Athletics

Women’s marathon

  • Gerda Steyn — 2:32:51, 45th
  • Cian Oldknow — 2:30:29, 32nd
  • Irvette van Zyl — 2:31:14, 37th

Wrestling

Men’s 97kg freestyle repechage 11am

  • Steyn de Lange lost to Murazi Mchedlidze (Ukraine) VP01 (3-5)

Striking murals depicting famous local athletes have been painted in 23 locations across the SA to inspire Msanzi to support Team SA at #Paris24. This initiative, which is part of the Bidvest OPEX programme, has also provided monthly income to the families from whom the walls are being rented.
Image: Bidvest Striking murals depicting famous local athletes have been painted in 23 locations across the SA to inspire Msanzi to support Team SA at #Paris24. This initiative, which is part of the Bidvest OPEX programme, has also provided monthly income to the families from whom the walls are being rented.

Operation Excellence: Bidvest backs SA's next generation of Olympians

[Supporting Team SA] is a milestone in what I call [Bidvest's] country duty. Sport is a unifier, but more so in SA, it's about social cohesion. So we're not just backing sport, we're backing societies and the country as a whole
Mpumi Madisa, Bidvest Group CEO

Thanks to a R66m cash injection by Bidvest, the South African Sports Confederation, Olympic and Paralympic Committee (Sascoc) has been able to revive its Operation Excellence (OPEX) programme.

Now named the Bidvest OPEX programme, it aims to:

  • Identify the next generation of SA athletes who have the potential to compete at the highest level in international events; and

  • Help them reach their full potential by supporting them with benefits such as living expenses, opportunities to attend local and international camps and competitions, and access to scientific and medical services.

SA Olympians who have previously benefitted from the programme include Matthew Brittain, Chad le Clos, Ryk Neethling, Sizwe Ndlovu, Roland Schoeman, Caster Semenya, John Smith, James Thompson, Cameron van der Burgh and Wayde van Niekerk.