Holding on in a tightly contested battle, Bergvliet High School managed to come out on top in the boys and girls divisions at the Western Cape leg of the Track+Field high schools athletics series held at Dal Josafat Stadium in Paarl on Saturday 22 March.
In the girls competition, Bergvliet raked in a total of 383 points, just 20 points more than Hoërskool Stellenbosch (363) in second place, while SACSSA WP (235) finished third.
Annelize Cloete, athletics coach at Bergvliet High School, was delighted with her teams performance as they qualified for the Track+Field National Final. “It means a lot for us to compete in this Track+Field series. We’ve never done anything like this because we only really started our athletics programme about two years ago, so this is a first for us,” Cloete said. “This is great exposure for our kids because we’re very secluded in the southern suburbs, so for us to be here is pretty big and it means a lot to us.”
In the boys division, Bergvliet secured a total of 443 points, while Stellenbosch again took the runner-up spot with 368 points, and SACSSA WP (292) ended third.
In individual events, Jesse Brooks (Bergvliet) produced the performance of the day, stopping the clock at 58,46 seconds in the u-17 girls 400m race.
Alicia Festus was also in superb form, winning the u-17 100m contest in 12,61 as she held off a challenge from her Stellenbosch teammate Haydan-Reese Cornelius who took second place in 12,67.
Bergvliet sprinter Pehatric Witbooi also impressed with a standout performance, charging to victory in 50,81 seconds in the boys u-17 400m race.
While the event was held in wet conditions in Paarl, series co-founder Mathew Quinn said they were pleased with the success of the meeting, as the Track+Field organisers continued to search for the top athletics school in South Africa while providing a platform for athletes to showcase their talent.
“The Track and Field series has been all around South Africa, and today we found ourselves looking for the best school in the Western Cape,” Quinn said. “Despite the wet conditions in Paarl, the performances were incredible, and Bergvliet and Stellenbosch were neck-and-neck most of the day, but in the end Berglviet were crowned champions in the boys and girls divisions, so congratulations to them. They will represent the Western Cape at the National Final where all the winners from each province will come together in a battle to become the No 1 athletics school in South Africa.”
