Durban North athletes makes a splash in Namibia
This was the Grade 12 Our Lady of Fatima learner's first international gala.
De Villiers' efforts helped push the country's medal tally up to 144 which included 65 golds for SA athletes across various sporting codes.
Speaking on her performance in the pool, the 18-year-old said she felt an enormous sense of pride wearing the green and gold.
Also read: Durban North resident reflects on Amashova victory
'Before the competition I was content with making the finals as I didn't really know what to expect as it was my first international gala. My first event at the games was the 50m butterfly which is my favourite event. I think winning that and achieving a personal best settled my nerves.
'After the race I thought 'maybe I can actually do really well here'. I'm really happy with my performances, aside from the 50m butterfly I also achieved other personal best (PB) times which I was ecstatic about. The best part for me was representing your country and standing on the podium listening to our national anthem, I just got goosebumps,' she said.
In all, her four gold medals were won in the 50m butterfly, the 4×100 freestyle relay, the 4×100 medley relay gold and the 4×100 mixed relay freestyle.
De Villiers, who is a member of Aqua Athletes Durban, is coached by Tracey Hemphill, who also happened to be one of the Team SA coaches at the event.
Video: Durban North resident shapes bodyboarding journey
'I really enjoyed having her there with me. She gave me good peace of mind and helped me with the mental aspect of the competition. I was a bit nervous to race in such a big gala but Tracey helped me so much. It was special to share the moment with my coach,' she said.
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The Citizen
09-08-2025
- The Citizen
Durban North athletes makes a splash in Namibia
DURBAN North resident Indiana de Villiers put in an exceptional performance at the recent African Union Sports Council (AUSC) Region 5 Youth Games in Namibia, winning 10 medals (four gold and six silvers). This was the Grade 12 Our Lady of Fatima learner's first international gala. De Villiers' efforts helped push the country's medal tally up to 144 which included 65 golds for SA athletes across various sporting codes. Speaking on her performance in the pool, the 18-year-old said she felt an enormous sense of pride wearing the green and gold. Also read: Durban North resident reflects on Amashova victory 'Before the competition I was content with making the finals as I didn't really know what to expect as it was my first international gala. My first event at the games was the 50m butterfly which is my favourite event. I think winning that and achieving a personal best settled my nerves. 'After the race I thought 'maybe I can actually do really well here'. I'm really happy with my performances, aside from the 50m butterfly I also achieved other personal best (PB) times which I was ecstatic about. The best part for me was representing your country and standing on the podium listening to our national anthem, I just got goosebumps,' she said. In all, her four gold medals were won in the 50m butterfly, the 4×100 freestyle relay, the 4×100 medley relay gold and the 4×100 mixed relay freestyle. De Villiers, who is a member of Aqua Athletes Durban, is coached by Tracey Hemphill, who also happened to be one of the Team SA coaches at the event. Video: Durban North resident shapes bodyboarding journey 'I really enjoyed having her there with me. She gave me good peace of mind and helped me with the mental aspect of the competition. I was a bit nervous to race in such a big gala but Tracey helped me so much. It was special to share the moment with my coach,' she said. For more from Northglen News, follow us on Facebook , X or Instagram. You can also check out our videos on our YouTube channel or follow us on TikTok. Click to subscribe to our newsletter – here
The Citizen
04-08-2025
- The Citizen
OPINION: What a treat to watch AB de Villiers in action again
The former Proteas batter hit three centuries during the tournament and was by far the leading run-scorer. Yes, it's not the real thing and the bowling isn't of the highest standard, but it still takes something special to do what AB de Villiers achieved at the recent World Championship of Legends tournament held in England. If you didn't know, the South African legends team won the tournament after beating Pakistan by nine wickets in the final at Edgbaston, in Birmingham, on Saturday. After Pakistan posted a very respectable 195/5 in their 20 overs, the South Africans chased down the score with nine wickets in hand and 19 balls remaining. De Villiers stole the show, as he did throughout the tournament. On Saturday he scored 120 not out off 60 balls to steer South Africa home. This was his third century in the tournament, to go with 3 (4), 63* (30), 116* (51), 123 (44), 6 (4). In all, in six innings he scored 429 runs at an average of 144 and strike rate of 220. De Villiers won four player-of-the-match awards. The next best batter was SA team-mate JJ Smuts who scored 186 runs. That is some batting by De Villiers. Champions South Africa It's no surprise Pakistan legends team captain Mohammad Hafeez said that for his team to stand a chance of winning the final they'd have to get De Villiers out cheaply. They didn't and South Africa won the tournament. 'It's not a big World Cup, but we wanted to be competitive and make South Africa proud,' said De Villiers after the match. He'd be dead right. It's not even close to winning a World Cup, in 50 or 20 overs cricket – something South Africa are yet to achieve – but it's still good and enjoyable to win any tournament, even if it is the legends who do it, in this case. But if there were any thoughts of Mr 360 making a comeback, De Villiers quashed them quickly on Saturday. 'It's not in me to do long tours anymore … I've also been struggling with a hamstring, side strain and back injury,' he said. Well, it was good to see De Villiers in action again, anyway – he smashed 47 fours and 25 sixes in the tournament. What a player.
IOL News
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- IOL News
AB de Villiers is still better than half the internationals at IPL, says Proteas legend Dale Steyn
Former Proteas skipper AB de Villiers led the South Africa Champions to the WCL title. Picture: Sportzpics Image: Sportzpics Former Proteas fast bowler Dale Steyn has hailed AB de Villiers' standout performances in South Africa's World Championship of Legends (WCL) victory at Edgbaston. De Villiers put years of near-misses during his illustrious career, especially the 2015 World Cup semi-final defeat to New Zealand when Steyn failed to defend 12 runs in the final over, behind him by lifting the WCL title this past weekend. The former Proteas skipper was magnificent throughout the tournament, top-scoring with 429 runs in six innings at an average of 143.00, with a strike rate of 220, with three centuries and a fifty. Video Player is loading. Play Video Play Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration -:- Loaded : 0% Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Window Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Dropshadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Advertisement Next Stay Close ✕ Ad loading De Villiers, though, kept his best for the final when he smashed an unbeaten 120* in 60 balls, with 12 fours and seven sixes, helping his team chase down 196 with nine wickets in hand in the final against Pakistan. After watching "Mr 360", Steyn posted in awe on X: "Unpopular/Popular opinion. AB is still better than half the internationals at IPL. Maybe even more." De Villiers last played competitive cricket in the IPL 2021 for Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB), scoring 313 runs in 14 matches with two fifties and a best score of 76*.
