Spies hopes to see weightlifting in SA go from strength to strength
Anneke Spies says she hopes to see the sport developed across the country according to the athlete development is focused on one province when we have so much talent in the entire country.
South African weightlifter Anneke Spies. Picture: Supplied.
JOHANNESBURG – This year we will see the best athletes from across the world battle it out at the Paris Olympic Games but ahead of that, athletes have been competing and continue to compete to get a spot.
Eyewitness News caught up with one of South Africa’s top weightlifters, Anneke Spies, to talk about her journey and her hopes for the future.
"This year has a very busy schedule. My hopes are to put the best performance I can on the platform, to show myself that the hard work and dedication is worth it," said Spies.
South African weightlifter, Anneke Spies. Picture: Supplied
The weightlifter was the only woman from Team SA to compete at the 2023 World Weightlifting Championships held in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, and managed to better her snatch by 1kg at the competition.
“Yes, it was a great competition. I was happy to end the year on a positive, although it wasn’t my best performance. 2023 was a long and difficult year with all the Olympic qualification events that drained the mind and body, so ending the year on a positive performance was a priority,” said Spies.
Weightlifting is a sport where athletes lift barbells loaded with weights. The sport tests the strength, power and technique of athletes.
“Weightlifting is a very technical sport. A lot of focus and discipline goes into the sport, more so than other sports I have been a part of. I’ve learned quite a lot of discipline and structure from the sport and how to maintain good sportsmanship, even if you did not do your best.”
South African weightlifter, Anneke Spies. Picture: Supplied
Spies began her weightlifting journey after competing in a CrossFit event and decided she wanted to get stronger and started doing weightlifting.
“I found the sport very suited to my build and enjoyed it quite a lot.”
The athlete told Eyewitness News she had medalled at several international competitions and said that the 2022 Commonwealth Games, where she came fourth, was what ignited her love for weightlifting.
“I’ve won a couple of medals in my career - at the Commonwealth Championships last year in India, as well as at continental championships in Mauritius, as well as Kenya. A great experience for me was the IWF Grand Prix II in Doha this past December.”
She said she hoped to see the sport develop across the country. According, to Spies development is focused on one province, when there's so much talent in the entire country.
South African weightlifter, Anneke Spies, in action. Picture: Supplied
“I think the sport is still quite small in our country and I hope to help inspire younger athletes to try the sport and see what it’s all about. I think our country has a lot of talent and amazing athletes and if we can grow the sport locally, we will have an amazing future internationally for this sport."
Spies said it would be great if the country focused on young athletes who had the potential but maybe not the means to get a proper coach or pay to compete internationally, to help and assist those athletes as they are the future of our sport.
“As someone who’s been in this sport for a couple of years, I know our country, unfortunately, does not support our sport or the athletes much. This didn’t stop me from trying to reach my goals, however, I do hope that our country can start seeing the potential of our athletes and that they can help our athletes, especially financially.”
Weightlifting will feature at the Olympic Games, with five medal events for both men and women scheduled for Paris 2024.