Olympian has a love/hate relationship with his sport

“I hate jumping. It takes so much out of you. I don’t like how you have to think and be on point all the time, if you’re not feeling well then you won’t do well. There is so much work and people think it is easy.”
These are not words one would expect to hear from a successful long jumper, let alone an African champion with a bronze Commonwealth Games medal and a ninth-place finish at the Rio 2016 Olympics – despite an injury incurred before he had to jump. Yet Ruswahl Samaai (25), is not completely frustrated with his 2.5cm hamstring tear in his left leg, as it allows him to take a break from long jump until February/March next year.
Indeed, the Westdene resident’s relationship with the sport is a complicated one, because he loves the sport at the same time. “I also live for jumping,” he smiled. “I’m all about the journey to the next competition, getting ready for the next thing. I guess it’s a love/hate relationship.”

Samaai’s earliest memory of long jump was as a young sprinter at Paarl Gymnasium. “I was busy doing blocks and saw people doing long jump so I just ran there and stood in the queue for it,” he recalled with a grin. “I tried it and the teacher said my landing was bad and I did not belong there. But I stayed and kept trying.”
The University of Johannesburg (UJ) Sportsman of the Year attributed his success to consistency, his ‘faith in God and knowing he has a plan for my life’, and self-motivation. He is sure he has one or two more Olympic Games left in him and said he had surpassed his best-recorded jump of 8.40m in training and will do so again in competitions to come.
He thanked his sponsor, Panasonic South Africa, for helping him financially and supporting him in this difficult time. Samaai is studying transport management at UJ and is considering starting his own transport business.