Jasmine’s Olympic dream draws closer
Jasmine had a successful 2016 with judo and wants this year to be even bigger.
TEENAGE judo star, Jasmine Martin, played a vital role in the significant medal contribution that her code delivered for Team South Africa at the AUSC Region 5 Games in Luanda, Angola. The competition featured teams from around Southern Africa.
The 16-year-old judoka has been making waves throughout the continent recently as she continues to grow and push towards eventually representing South Africa at the Olympic Games, however, despite having a successful 2016 she understands that there is a tough road ahead of her.
“I was really happy with how everything went in 2016,” she said. “I won a lot of medals and finished the year ranked in the top 20 in the world which was a huge positive, but I know that I have to move up a weight category into my Olympic weight category which means the girls are bigger and stronger.
“It is going to be hard but I am really looking forward to the challenge that the next stage of my career is going to pose,” a humble Martin added.
Following a long 2016, Martin’s motivation was at an all-time high when she took part in the Zone 5 Games in Angola’s capital, Luanda, and with her victory in her weight category she became the first South African woman to earn a gold medal at the games.
“It was great to finish the year off with a gold medal at the Region 5 Games and it really just motivates me to carry on performing well and working hard,” she said.
Martin mentioned early in 2016 that her aim is to win a medal at the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo.
“Moving up into a different weight category means that I am going to have to get faster and build more mass to compete but I have Prime and the Elite Athlete Development Programme to help me along the way.
“This year is going to be another really big year for me as I want to win both the U18 and the U21 titles at the Africa Championships because those count towards a large number of ranking points towards the World Championships. The African Champs is the event that I am really looking forward to this year because of the amount of points that I can get from performing well. It is going to be another big year but I am really looking forward to the challenge and hoping it will be just as successful as 2016,” said Martin.
