Tatjana Smith says she knew she had to retire from swimming after Paris Olympic Games
Smith called time on her career as a professional athlete after winning a gold and a silver medal at the Paris Olympic Games to add to the two medals she won in Tokyo three years ago
South Africa's Tatjana Smith celebrates after winning the final of the women's 100m breaststroke swimming event during the Paris 2024 Olympic Games at the Paris La Defense Arena in Nanterre, west of Paris, on 29 July 2024. Picture: AFP
JOHANNESBURG - South Africa's most decorated Olympian Tatjana Smith has her sights set on a new goal after calling time on her swimming career.
She wants to make her sport accessible to children of diverse backgrounds, who otherwise wouldn’t have the opportunity to participate in it.
Smith called time on her career as a professional athlete after winning a gold and a silver medal at the Paris Olympic Games to add to the two medals she won in Tokyo three years ago. She retires as the country’s most successful participant at the Olympics in history and her decision to bow out on her own terms is one she says helped her enjoy the experience at this year's games a lot more.
“To be able to know that it’s your last, I don’t think a lot of people get to experience that. Sometimes you have to make a retirement decision based on something like a injury and it’s not really by choice, which is challenging. So, I’m fortunate that it’s a decision that I made, and I took in every moment, knowing it was my last. It was so beautiful getting to share that with my family too,” Smith said.
The two-time Olympic gold medallist’s passion now lies in eliminating the barriers that prevent access to the resources that make competing in swimming possible.
ALSO READ: Five fun facts about Tatjana Smith
“Swimming has been called an elitist sport and that’s because the cost of swimming is so expensive. How are we supposed to get the talent from the non-privileged areas if we can’t give them financial backing? For people that maybe do have money, it’s already expensive. There’s so much talent out there, we just need to give them the opportunity,” said Smith.
In the euphoria of the celebrations to welcome South Africa’s medalists home from their successful time in France, a number of promises have been made by the Sports Ministry.
They include increasing funding for athletes, or to double the athlete contingent at the next Olympics and even making facilities available to distant or destitute communities.
Whether or not this will become a reality remains to be seen, but Smith has called for concrete plans to be put in place to develop swimming in the country.
“You need to eat right, you need to get the recovery – that’s what it all takes, and all those things build up. You can’t just have a swimming pool and a have a costume and googles. You need all those other things to play a role. That’s why I’m so passionate about it – we need to make a change. It’s nice to have the conversations and have these dreams, but someone needs to take action,” Smith said.