The sporting year that was in 2018

The year 2018 was challenging in most parts and it was no exception for the sporting fraternity in Boksburg.

The likes of biking star Brent Harran lost grip of the Motard Championship; Tommy Oosthuizen was dealt a big blow to his impressive ascension up the boxing ladder and the Boksburg Football Club’s season has been barely short of a nightmare.

Having said that, there’s also been some bright ends in 2018: one of the high profile headlines is the appointment of Benzi Tenza as the new and first black chairman of the Boksburg Athletic Club.

Towards the end of the year, during the first half of the 2018/2019 season, both local cricket sides produced fine results, keeping hopes alive of league glory.

December

• When the Advertiser met up with javelin rising star Armant van der Linden in October, he dared to end what has been a decorated year for him on a high note. At the time he was preparing for his final event of the year, the interprovincial championships, he represented Central Gauteng at the tournament which took place at the Puk McArthur Stadium in Potchefstroom on November 24. He produced a throw of 72.78m for the u-15 boys, setting a personal best and a new national club record which convincingly eliminated the previous record of 64.96m.

• Thabiso ‘The Rock’ Mchunu added the African Boxing Union (ABU) cruiserweight belt to his South African cruiserweight title when he convincingly outboxed Tommy Oosthuizen to score a unanimous decision win after 12 rounds at Emperors Palace on December 8.

• Two-time EFC heavyweight champion Ruan ‘Fangzz’ Potts suffered a TKO defeat to American Jared ‘The Mountain’ Vanderaa during their interim heavyweight title fight at EFC 76 in Pretoria on December 8.

Potts, a former UFC heavyweight, was eyeing to make a comeback that would’ve impressed Lazarus. He has been absent from the hexagon for more than a year due to a serious knee injury.

A victory would have meant claiming the title for the third time on his return.

But his parade was ruined by the US international, who dominated proceedings before it finally told a little over three minutes in the third and final round, with the referee intervening, which improved Vanderaa’s record to 8-3. Potts, on the other hand, dropped to 11-7.

November

• Athletics guru Benzi Tenza was named as the new chairman of the Boksburg Athletics Club (BAC) during the club’s recently held AGM (annual general meeting).

Tenza, a staunch member of BAC, became the first black chairperson in the club’s long, decorated history.

Born and educated in Pietermaritzburg, the new BAC chair has been a member of the club for 12 years and boasts 14 Comrades Marathon appearances under his belt.

• Atlasville swimmer Ricardo Di Domenico was selected to represent the South African Youth team to feature at the eighth edition of the Africa Union Sports Council Region 5 u-20 Games, previously known as the Zone VI Games. They were held between December 7 and 16 in Botswana.

• The Springs Rugby Club organised a 5km fun run for the Boksburg Rugby Club halfback Dirkie Burger as a gesture of goodwill and sportsmanship at Olympia Park on December 1.

Burger suffered a stroke in early August during the Valke Peregrine League semi-final clash between Boksburg and Springs at Olympia Park midway through the second half, leaving the No. 9 with a speech impediment and a paralysed right arm and leg.

October

• EFC middleweight fighter JP ‘Tinkerbell’ Kruger has confirmed it remains to be seen if he will return to the hexagon.

• Sunward Park fitness star Penny Wilbers finished an impressive year on a silver note as she won the runners-up medal at the Mr and Miss Universe amateur and pro competition in Italy on October 13.

• Gauteng amateur boxing champion Cayden Webb was crowned the South African champion at the South African Boxing Championships in Limpopo.

Webb, a student at the Hammer Gym in Boksburg, a stable which also includes South African boxing heavyweights such as accomplished trainer Harold Volbrecht and ABU cruiserweight champion Tommy Oosthuizen, improved his record to 21-0.

• Rhythmic gymnast Yaounde ‘Yaya’ Mabaso was named as the overall winner at the Gauteng provincials held in Centurion.

September

• Morganridge ultra athlete Amanda Kuun added another extreme athletic event to her impressive resume, the Cathedral Peak challenge. The challenge is a 20km round trip that starts and ends at the Cathedral Peak Hotel and goes right to the top and back of Cathedral Peak, with a total ascent of 1 531m.

• The local club all but scooped every award before being named the 2017/18 Club of the Year for the first time in its history at the Ekurhuleni Bowls District annual general meeting held at the Alberton Bowling Club.

• Kempton Park Football Club denied the Boksburg Football Club of a consolation win in the league’s last round of play. The home side defeated the hapless Blues 2-1 to keep them rooted at the base of the log table with 17 points from their total 25 outings.

• Thomas Oosthuizen defeated the odds and Thabiso Mchunu to be crowned the new ABU cruiserweight champion during the Golden Gloves’ Call to Glory event at Emperors Palace on Saturday, September 1.

August

• A last-gasp converted try by outside centre Johan Zondagh handed Springs a dramatic 35-32 win over East Rand United during the Valke Peregrine League final at a freezing Barnard Stadium in Kempton Park on August 18.

• Hoërskool Dr EG Jansen athlete Ruan Bronkhorst set a new personal best in the high jump, winning double gold in Italy.

• Valke Peregrine League log leaders Springs overcame a valiant effort from visiting TW Boksburg during their semi-final clash in Springs on August 4.

July

• The Atlas Bowling Club celebrated its 50th anniversary at the club on July 28.

• Over 700 enthusiastic young cyclists peddled around the newly constructed 7.8km mountain bike park during the Ekurhuleni leg of the Gauteng Schools Mountain Bike League held at Boksburg Stadium on July 28.

• Following a largely stressful Valke Peregrine League campaign, the Prince George Park outfit was handed their last chance to keep their playoff hopes alive against Brakpan at home on July 21. And they grabbed the bull by its horns when they ran riot before thumping the visitors 66-31 for a memorable bonus-point victory.

June

• Sunward Park fitness model Penny Wilbers was crowned world champion after winning the over 50 category at the IBFF World Championships held in Brežice, Slovenia.

• Boksburg’s veteran driver Isabel Greyvenstein produced her best driving over the 400m dash to set a new South African women’s record at the Tarlton Raceway in Krugersdorp. The Atlasville resident, 57, raced to 272km/ h in her rail race car before swiftly crossing the finishing line in 8.01 seconds.

• Billy Oosthuizen claimed his second win as an EFC athlete in just 34 seconds against Jasen van der Merwe following a controversial TKO ruling by the referee at Carnival City.

May

• Van Dyk Park MMA fighter Robert ‘9mm’ Swanepoel signed with Africa’s mega MMA organisation EFC.

• United scored eight tries compared to Boksburg’s four as they completed a convincing double over their neighbours with a 63-27 rout. The reverse game at PG Park was 48-24.

• Birchwood Half Marathon champion Lebohang Nkofu added to his marathon accolades when he was crowned the 2018 Colgate Race champion at the Boksburg City Stadium on May 6.

April

• Tembisa Athletics Club’s star Moeketsi Moletsane comfortably won the Birchwood Half-Marathon’s ultimate distance of 21.1km to be crowned the 2018 champion. Moletsane (31), who looked like he could do another 21km race, clocked one hour, 12 minutes and 11 seconds for the win, four minutes ahead of Action Ramaboea (Ivory Park Athletics Club).

• The Kempton Park Premier League XI has completed what has been an outstanding season for the club when they beat Premier League rivals Benoni Northerns in the final to be crowned the 2017/18 champions.

• CMH Boksburg were crowned champs of the Eastern Cricket Premier League II – which earned them promotion to the Premier League.

March

• It was a flurry of tries at Prince George Park as a rampant TW Boksburg side ran in more than 10 tries to skin American touring side Schuylkill River in an international friendly match on March 24.

• A quartet of powerlifting athletes from Boksburg won three gold medals and one silver between them at the Strongman Africa Championship held at the Malichri Lion Lodge in Rustenburg.

February

• South African 10km hand-cycling record holder Sister Maseko settled for ninth position overall at the 42km OCC Outeniqua Wheelchair Challenge in George, earning him the silver medal.

• Billy Oosthuizen TKO’d Siyabonga ‘Shaka Zulu’ Zulu to register the quickest fight in Extreme Warriors’ Championship’s (EWC) young history. It took Oosthuizen just 29 seconds to dismiss Zulu, breaking his own record he set at EWC 6 when he blitzed to a 36-second victory against Pakamiso Dumiso.

• Team Protouch rider Reynard Butler dethroned Calvin Beneke in dramatic fashion as the Dis-Chem Ride for Sight defending champion when he crossed the line in 2:39:54, improving his own time by more than 14 minutes when he won the race in 2016 in a time of 2:53:55.

January

• Former Brakpan coach Francois Erasmus (56) succeeded Marcell Fourie, who opted to step down after two years at the helm.

• Grandmaster Hikaru Nakamura took part in a 101-game simultaneous chess exhibition at Birchwood Hotel and Conference Centre in Boksburg on January 7. – @SabeloBoksburg