While the country’s swimming team left the World Aquatics Championships with four medals, thanks to Pieter Coetzé’s gold and two silvers and Kaylene Corbett’s bronze, the pick of the SA athletes competing in the other sports contested at the event in Singapore was open water swimmer Callan Lotter.
The 19-year-old secured 16th place in all three of the individual events she contested – the 5km and 10km as well as the newly introduced 3km knockout swim. That was a marked improvement on the 29th place she achieved in the 10km at last year’s World Aquatics Championships in Doha.
The Pretoria University student could be particularly proud considering the tough conditions in Singapore, where the 10km race was postponed twice because of the water quality and the steamy water temperature was almost beyond the limit to compete.
“This was one of the hardest 10km races I had ever swum in my life, with the 31 degrees warm water and huge waves,” explained Lotter. “My body started cramping up early in the race. I knew that it was going to be a long race, and I am extremely proud of myself in how I overcame this.”
Lotter knew she was in good shape heading into the championships, having finished 13th in the 10km race and 11th in the 3km knockout at the Setúbal leg of the Open Water World Cup series in June.
“I knew I was capable of coming in the top 20 or even better,” she said. “I had done all the training that I could have to the best of my abilities. I was confident in my abilities going into the competition and I am proud of the outcome,” she said.
Lotter added that these results have been a major confidence boost, looking ahead to the next World Championships and then Olympic Games in 2028.
“This competition boosted my experience and racing on the international stage, which helps me prepare for more World Championships and the Olympics,” she said. “I try to learn as much as possible from each race and use the experience in my future racing. It makes me more determined to swim and compete with the best open water swimmers in the world.”
Meanwhile, Zalika Methula and Bailey Heydra led the charge for the South African divers in Singapore. The duo finished 14th overall in the synchronised 3m springboard event. Both divers, who also competed in the individual events, are based in the USA – Heydra in Nevada and Methula in Kentucky, where she is studying neuroscience, so time training together as a pair was limited.
Methula explained before the competition: “Competing synchro with a partner I don’t train with can be challenging, but we try not to focus on what we can’t control and rather on how fast we can adapt and trust each other when competing.”
The SA water polo teams found it tough going in Singapore, with the women finishing 15th and the men 16th. The women were grouped with Olympic champions Spain, France and Great Britain and claimed one win in their playoff matches, beating hosts Singapore 8-4 in their final game.
Speaking afterwards, Shakira January said: “This game was a nice reminder that all our hard work does pay off, and we just trust in the process now. Every tournament, we’re just going to improve better and better, so at least we can see a good foundation. The only way is up from here.”
The other sport where South Africans were represented in Singapore was artistic swimming where Xera Vegter Maharajh finished 26th overall in the solo free routine and 33rd in the solo technical routine. Aurelia Pretoria and Rebecca Schenk were 39th in the duet technical routine, and the SA team finished 20th in the team free routine and 25th in the team technical routine.
Vegter Maharajh was pleased with her performances, considering the obstacles she overcame in the build-up to the competition, which included a concussion, a dislocated shoulder, and having to switch music for her routines because of licensing issues.
“I was happy with my performances in both technical and free solos. Coming into the competition, I was quite nervous as this was my first time competing internationally under the new judging system, while most of my competitors have been to competitions under this system since late 2022,” she explained.
“Both of my routines were free of base marks, and although I would’ve liked to have achieved a higher score and ranking, I was happy that I could compete considering my recent injuries.
“Overall, the experience in Singapore was positive, and I left with motivation to keep working for future competitions.”