Six months ago, the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris were the last thing on Siviwe Soyizwapi's mind as he was still recovering from a knee injury and the Springbok Sevens were tumbling out of the automatic qualification spots on the HSBC SVNS log.
“I felt at that time that my body was failing me,” recalled Soyizwapi.
“The recovery was not going according to plan and the injury was not responding the way I was hoping it would. I did not see myself playing for the Blitzboks again in 2024.”
Also, after being the Blitzboks’ regular captain for a couple of seasons, Soyizwapi’s absence meant that he could not stop the slump the team experienced. The experience of 50-plus tournaments in the world series could not be shared.
On Wednesday, as the Springbok Sevens team departed for France for their third consecutive Olympic Games, the silver lining broke through the dark clouds of six months ago. Soyizwapi is Paris-bound.
“A lot has changed and all for the good,” he said. “We are going to France knowing that we back ourselves to get a result.
“We worked incredibly hard to put ourselves back into the race for a medal. For me personally, the knowledge that my body is back to full strength and that my teammates are fit and ready make this an exciting trip. We know what we know, to use a well-known phrase.”
The 31-year-old wing will be going to his second Olympic Games, but few would argue that the first one, in Tokyo in 2021, was a memorable one. The Blitzboks lost to Argentina in the quarterfinals despite an early South American red card and had to do without coach Neil Powell, who was in isolation in Kagoshima City.
“That was not what one dreamt about and envisaged of the Olympics,” said Soyizwapi, “but this time around, we can have the full experience of being part of the village, meeting other athletes and supporting South Africans participating.
“That is also why we want to make this one count. We come in under the radar, but I believe we can go all the way.”
The Blitzboks will arrive in France on Thursday and will settle into the Olympic Village, with the Rugby Sevens tournament for men taking place from 24-27 July at the Stade de France.
South Africa will face Ireland, New Zealand and Japan in Pool A. Argentina, Australia, Samoa and Kenya will contest Pool B, while in Pool C, hosts France and defending champions Fiji will face USA and Uruguay.
Blitzboks’ pool schedule (SA times):
Wednesday 24 July:
5:30pm: Ireland
9:30pm: New Zealand
Thursday 25 July:
4pm: Japan
Blitzbok squad for 2024 Olympic Games:
1) Christie Grobbelaar
2) Ryan Oosthuizen
3) Impi Visser *
4) Zain Davids *
5) Quewin Nortje
6) Tiaan Pretorius
7) Shaun Williams
8) Selvyn Davids * (captain)
9) Tristan Leyds
10) Rosko Specman **
11) Siviwe Soyizwapi *
12) Shilton van Wyk
13) Ronald Brown * (travelling reserve)
14) Katlego Letebele (travelling reserve)
* indicates Tokyo 2021
** indicates Rio 2016