Varsity Athletics returns to the athletics calendar for a fifth season in 2017. This year’s Varsity Athletics season will comprise of two meetings – the first hosted by the North West University on 3 March and the second on 31 March at the University of Pretoria’s newly-renovated stadium.
Some of the athletes taking part in Varsity Athletics this year performed on the Olympic stage in Rio last year, and they’re set to use this platform to build towards Tokyo 2020. Some of the Olympic athletes to have performed on the Varsity Athletics stage include Caster Semenya, Wayde van Niekerk, Justine Palframan, Rushwal Samaai, LJ van Zyl and Akani Simbine.
The public is sure to be spoilt for choice with scintillating performances from the cream of the crop of South Africa’s athletics community, on both track and field. The likes of Gift Leotlela and Clarence Munyai are set to light Friday nights on the track.
“Varsity Athletics affords fantastic opportunities to our young athletes to help them prepare for the biggest athletics event in the world, the Olympic Games, as well as the World Championships,” said Varsity Athletics Manager, Jana Arlow. “They have such passion and love for the sport, and will certainly do their universities proud during Varsity Athletics in 2017.”
The event will continue with the format introduced last year, with two divisions: the Top 15 (A) division which will have eight competing universities, and the Top 10 (B) division, with four competing universities. This format was adopted to accommodate more universities in the Varsity Athletics competition. These universities that joined Varsity Athletics in 2016 are: the University of Cape Town, Central University of Technology, University of Limpopo, and Vaal University of Technology.
