On Saturday, South African swimmer Tatjana Schoenmaker has set a new African and South African record in the 100m women’s breaststroke at the World Student Games in Italy.
Schoenmaker went on to win the semifinal in 1:06.32, beating her previous personal record by 0.09 seconds.
In the final, the SA swimmer clinched the gold medal in 1:06.42.
Mai Fukasawa from Japan was second in 1:07.22 and fellow citizen Kanako Watanabe was third in 1:07.28.
Schoenmaker’s coach, Rocco Meiring, said, “Schoenmaker has been on an emotional rollercoaster since last year’s Commonwealth Games.”
Meiring said, “Like a real champ, she did not let it deter her from what needed she needed to do. Tatjana continued to put in the long hard hours during training and making significant sacrifices without ever complaining.” Her coach added, “Experience and having learned how to overcome disappointments taught Tatjana to only focus on the goal at hand when it matters. That is why she won the 100m-breaststroke final.”
