He says the quadrennial international multi-sport event for athletes from the Commonwealth of Nations is used as a yardstick for the federation to measure itself against top swimming nations such as Australia, New Zealand and Great Britain.

Speaking to SABC Sport, Fritz stated that Swimming South Africa is the number one federation in the country in terms of podium performances on the International stage and stressed how important it is to maintain that record.

However, he highlighted the difficulty of doing so due to limited investment into aquatic sport and facilities.

Swimming South Africa's team secured 11 medals – four gold, four silver and three bronze – at the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, one shy of the 12 they amassed at the 2018 edition on the Gold Coast in Australia. Fritz insists there has been no decline in performance over the years and is confident that the federation has, according to him, already “confirmed” six medals for the 2026 Commonwealth Games.

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“There are things that influence that, particularly the support that swimming receives in other commonwealth nations. If you look at the investment in the UK into aquatic

sports, and the investment in Australia and New Zealand. New Zealand are really on top of their game as far as aquatic sport is concerned, particularly swimming.

“And then you look at the investment that we [South Africa] receive,it has averaged roughly two million rand over the last ten years. Compared to 350 million pounds that

the United Kingdom has most probably invested,it’s chalk and cheese. That is just an indication of how much potential our athletes have – with a little bit of investment, they still perform on the world stage, it is incredible,” said Fritz

In September last year, Fritz admitted to the public broadcaster that the federation is unable to host any major international competitions due to the lack of proper facilities in the country – a view he maintains as he calls on the commitment of the government.

He revealed that Swimming South Africa gets between R150 million and R200 million which goes into a municipal infrastructural grant (MIG), stating that this grant is there to build facilities.

“We have had discussions with the ministry in this regard and have identified a roadmap of where we would like to see facilities developed. The Newlands pool in Cape Town is most probably a venue that could host an international event if it was up to standard. Cape Town lends itself to International tourism and International events, and that would bring a huge amount of tourists into the Western Cape, that would kickstart the economy unbelievably.”

South Africans will not see Tatjana Smith representing the green and gold at the 2026 Commonwealth Games, as the four-time Olympic medalist retired after the 2024 Paris Olympic Games. The SSA President believes that despite her absence, Swimming South Africa remains in good hands and has singled out Kaylene Corbett as a capable successor.

“For me, Kaylene Corbett is on the up. She already won a bronze medal at the last World Championships in Singapore – the world’s best were there. Between Kaylene and Lara van Niekerk, I believe they should secure at least three medals between them at the upcoming Commonwealth Games. So we are not short of talent to replace Tatjana.”

Liam Maconi

Articles By Liam Maconi

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