Rio 2016 - Meet SA race walker Anel Oosthuizen
Top South African 20-kilometre race walker Anél Oosthuizen, who qualified for the Rio Olympics with a national record, said she felt like she was ‘dreaming’ ahead of the biggest moment of her sporting career
The 21-year-old University of Johannesburg student said that although the word ‘excited’ was quite the understatement, she was adopting a mature approach.
‘I think for any athlete it is extremely important to stay focused and to make sure you do what is necessary when competing at the Olympics,’ said Oosthuizen, who grew up in George in the Western Cape.
‘That is something you will have to keep reminding yourself of when you are there. It is important not to let the hype of the Olympics influence you to a level that you get too emotional about it.’
Her Olympic dreams started to take shape when she moved to Gauteng to study teaching at UJ and joined their athletic programme. ‘I have improved immensely since I started at UJ and my coach, Carl Meyer, has played a very big role in that.
