Hillcrest pupil excelling at sport
His mom dedicates hours next to the pool giving support and watching him train.
GRADE 3 Hillcrest Primary School learner, Enrico Vorbeck (aka ‘Peanut’) is passionate about most sport, but his two favourites are badminton and swimming.
He started playing badminton at the age of six with his dad, Paul, who is not only his biggest supporter but also his coach. In 2014, Enrico became the U9 SA Badminton Champion by winning the U9 boys’ singles title as well as the U9 doubles title. This year, he won the U11 SA boys’ singles title and U11 SA doubles title.
He started swimming at the age of seven with Melissa Corfe before joining the Kloof Amateur Swimming Club (KASC) under head coach, Nick Gray. During his two years of swimming, he has won in excess of 100 medals and broken numerous records.
He also has a love for open water swimming, with one of his highlights being when he swam the Midmar Mile at the age of seven in a time of 41 minutes and 54 seconds, which was the fastest time for a seven-year-old in the history of the race. He repeated this achievement at age eight.
He was presented with the trophy for the overall best nine-year-old male swimmer in the KZN Junior Championship gala, which was held at Kingspark at the end of September. In the last two galas he swam, being the TYR Junior Sprints gala and the Action Kids Spring gala, he swam in 10 events, won 10 gold medals and broke 10 records.
He is supported by his mom, Brigitte, and older brother, Aidan, who spend hours next to the pool at training and galas.
