Colette Uys had one goal at the beginning of the year: to be the best she could be as an athlete, and she is starting to do precisely that.
The Tuks medical student proved it yesterday when she won the hammer throw during the South African Athletics Championships in Pietermaritzburg. With her winning distance of 64.31 metres, Uys has established herself as one of the best. In the history of South African athletics, only three female athletes can boast of having thrown further.
Leandri Holthausen set a South African record last year with a 66.11m effort. In 2022, Phethisang Makhethe threw 65.40 metres, and in 2021, Marga Cumming set a personal best by throwing 64.60 metres.
Uys was justifiably excited by her performance. Only a few athletes can boast of improving their personal best by more than four metres in 12 months. Uys can. At the end of last year, her best was 59.99 metres.
Amazing is the word Uys used to describe how it felt to win her first South African senior title and to throw further than 64 metres.
"I am genuinely grateful. The result proves that hard work does pay off. What excites me is that I know I can throw even further. One of my attempts was massive. It could have been further than my winning distance, but I will never know as I had stepped over."
Uys credited her big throw to the hard work she and her coach, Juanita Dupisanie, did to improve her release.
The Tuks student also won bronze in the shot with a distance of 16.58 metres. It is a season's best.
If Uys can have her way, she would like to keep competing in the hammer throw and shot put.
"While I studied at the University of South Alabama, I was encouraged not to specialize too early on. The hammer throw and shot put techniques are different but not to such an extent to confuse me. The biggest difference is that you turn on your left heel in the hammer throw, while in the shot put, you are on your toes when you turn."
According to Uys, the time she spent in the USA changed her perception of how to train.
"I have returned a better athlete. I know now what it means to train hard. Before I left for the USA, I had never done any gym work. The Americans could not believe it. When they asked me to do a clean and snatch with weights, I had no idea what they were talking about. As a youngster in South Africa, I relied on my natural strength."
Tuks's Shannon Verster won the women's heptathlon with a score of 5290. Rolien Louw (Tuks) is the South African under-20 champion (4847), while Micyla Botha (Tuks) won bronze (4675).
The 17-year-old learner from TuksSport High School impressed by finishing third in the 400m-hurdles in 49.57 seconds. For now, it is the fastest time in the world for an under-18 athlete. Lindukuhle Gora won in 49.45 seconds.