On 3 October, the Free State will shine a spotlight on its next generation of sporting talent at the highly anticipated Free State Sport Stars awards ceremony and gala event, to be held at the Monte Bello Estate in Bloemfontein.
Presented by the University of the Free State (UFS) and Central24, it honours the exceptional achievements of young sports stars across various disciplines. The province is renowned as a breeding ground for talent, and this year’s gala will not only recognise individual accomplishments but also celebrate some of the best school teams in South Africa.
The following outstanding young athletes will be honoured for their impressive performances:
Tennis
- Donna le Roux (Meisieskool Oranje): gold medal in doubles at the National Championships, silver medal in singles at the National Championships, part of the South African team for the African Junior Championships, selected for the Grand Slam Development Fund to compete in four ITF tournaments, chosen for the South African schools team; and
- Lian du Toit (Grey College): selected for the South African schools team.
Swimming
- Aiden Nel (Grey College): Nationally, first in South Africa in the 400IM, second in the 1500m Freestyle, third in the 800m Freestyle, fourth in the 400m, 3000m and 5000m Freestyle, eighth in the 200m Freestyle, and tenth in 200IM. At the 51st Midmar Mile (world’s largest open water swimming event) first High School Learner (14-18 Years), first Free State Swimmer (14-30 Years), and eleventh overall (14-30 Years) of 763 male swimmers. Internationally (SA Swimming Team), at the 15th African Junior Championships in Mauritius second in the 400m Freestyle Relay, second in the 400m Medley Relay, fifth in the 800m and the 1500m Freestyle, and sixth in the 400 Freestyle.
Table tennis
- Refilwe Phoofolo (Boaremelo Combined High School): selected for the national squad (June 2024), selected for the African Youth national squad (June 2024), competed at the African Youth Champs in Botswana (July 2024), participated in the South African juniors trials (March 2024), and provincial junior champion (2024).
Netball
- Mariaan Louw (Meisieskool Oranje): included in the South African U17 team for matches against Namibia.
Karate
- Khitsane Bohlokwa (Harriston High School): gold medal at the African Region South (junior, under 68 kg), selected for the Protea team for the African Championships in Tunisia (September 2024), gold medal at JKA Nationals;
- Josh Bezuidenhout (Bethlehem Voortrekker High School): gold medal at the African Region South (junior, over 76 kg);
- Johanco Greyvenstein (Sentraal High School): selected for the South African karate team (2023 and 2024), ranked number 1 in Junior Kumite, over 76 kg, silver medal at AUSC Region South (2024), gold medal at the WSKF World Championships (Tokyo, Japan);
- Bridget Otto (Eunice High School): world champion in Youth Ladies Kumite, silver medal in kata at World Championships, bronze medal in team Kumite Senior Women’s (21 to 35 years), representing South Africa at Worlds in China (September 2024); and
- Katlego Nlapo (Eunice High School): bronze medal in team Kumite Senior Women’s, bronze medal in Junior kata (14 to 15 years), representing South Africa at Worlds in China (September 2024).
Hockey
- Bianca Rees-Gibbs (Eunice High School): selected for the South African U18A schools hockey team;
- Georgia Kambanis (Eunice High School): selected for the South African U17A hockey team;
- Kirsten Booysen (Meisieskool Oranje): selected for the South African U16A team, and the South African U17A women’s team that will participate in Malaysia (November 2024);
- Matthias Visser (Grey College): selected for the South African U17A hockey team; and
- Neilyantro van Schalkwyk (Grey College): selected for the South African U17A hockey team.
Basketball
- Bogolo Koikoi (Navalsig High School): most valuable player (MVP) and gold medallist at the National School Sport Championships (2023), will be representing South Africa in the U17 female basketball team participating in the Zone 5 Africa Championships (Namibia 2025).
Athletics
- Bertie Cruywagen (Jim Fouché High School): participated in the U20 World Championships in Lima, Peru;
- Charne Wansbury (Meisieskool Oranje): represented South Africa at the U20 World Championships in Lima, Peru, as part of the relay squad;
- Mathew Durrow (Fichardtpark High School): won a gold medal at the ASA U20 Championships in the hammer throw event;
- Judy Watson (Fichardtpark High School): won a gold medal at the South African Schools U17 Championships in the discus throw event;
- Jurgen Nortje (Grey College): first place at the ASA U20 Championships in the 800 m event;
- Gerhard Bossert (Witteberg High School): first place at the ASA U20 Championships in the 2 000 m steeple chase event;
- Anika Lötter (Trio High School): first place at the ASA U20 Championships in the pole vault event;
- Danny Melaat (Jim Fouché High School): first place at the ASA U20 Championships in triple jump;
- Jane de Villiers (Witteberg High School): first place at the ASA U20 Championships in the 5 000 m race walk event;
- Carise van Rooyen (Bethlehem Voortrekker High School): a silver medal at the ASA U20 Championships in the 800 m event, ranked second in the 800 m category in South Africa; and
- Cara Smith (Meisieskool Oranje): U20 Heptathlon athlete, ranked second in South Africa.
Rugby
- Pieter van der Merwe, Ethan Adams, AJ Meyer, Alzeadon Felix, (all from Grey College) and Cecil Parsons from Bethlehem Voortrekker High School were all selected for the South African schools rugby team.
Other sporting codes
- Leibrandt Swart (Bethlehem Voortrekker High School): competed in the Shooting World Championships in the Czech Republic;
- Caylin Majiedt (Eunice High School): South African under 70 kg junior kickboxing champion and a bronze medalist at the Kickboxing Junior World Championships in Budapest, Hungary;
- Roechelle van der Merwe (Jim Fouché High School): gold medalist at the Asian Pacific African Powerlifting and Benchpress Championships, and set a new South African record;
- Leanri Fourie (Meisieskool Oranje): awarded the FEI medal at SANESA Equestrian Sport; and
- WJ Kruger and Simoné Pretorius (Bethlehem Voortrekker High School): selected for the Protea team in biathle.
Special recognition
- The Meisieskool Oranje’s first tennis team: nominated as the number one ranked team in South Africa.
The Free State Sport Stars gala event is poised to be an inspiring evening, celebrating the dedication of young athletes who are the future of South African sports.
