South African flyer believes they ‘can go all the way’ at the Olympic Games

Although South Africa’s sevens team battled to qualify for the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris, flyer Siviwe “Shakes” Soyizwapi is backing the team to be among the competition’s medallists.

The Blitzboks are traditional heavyweights on World Rugby’s Sevens Series but they found the going tough in recent times and missed out on automatic qualification for the Olympics as they failed to finish among the top four teams in the Series at the end of the 2022/23 season.

Missed another opportunity to qualify for Olympics

South Africa then missed a second opportunity to qualify for the global showpiece in Paris when they lost to Kenya in the final of the Rugby Africa Olympic Games 2024 qualifying tournament in Harare.

They then beat Great Britain in their World Rugby Sevens Repechage final in Monaco last month to claim the last spot in the men’s Rugby Sevens competition at the Olympics.

And now focus turns to securing a medal – something which Soyizwapi believes is in South Africa’s reach despite them taking a difficult road to Paris.

The Blitzboks departed for France for their third consecutive Olympics on Wednesday and the reality set in for Soyizwapi that they will be competing among the world’s best sevens teams.

“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.

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“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 team-mates are fit and ready make this an exciting trip. We know what we know, to use a well-known phrase.”

The 31-year-old admitted that he is grateful to be involved with the Blitzboks as he sustained a serious knee injury six months ago, which almost ruined his chances of representing his country in the shortened version of the game in 2024.

“I felt at that time that my body was failing me,” said 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.”

Does not remember previous Olympics fondly

He was also part of the Blitzboks squad at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021 – which was played a year later due to the Covid-19 pandemic – but that was not a memorable tournament for the South Africans as they were knocked out in the quarter-finals by Argentina despite their opponents having a player red-carded early on.

“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.”

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