LIMPOPO – Local tennis star, Kgothatso Montjane, was awarded Gauteng’s Disabled Sportswoman of the Year title at the Gauteng Sport Awards ceremony held at the Gallagher Convention Centre on November 13.
The awards were aimed to celebrate the achievements of South African sport stars who performed well throughout the year. Montjane participated in major tennis grand slams this year and she became the first African woman and first black South African to play at the Wimbledon final in London in July.
The 35-year-old from Seshego is ranked fifth globally and number one in Africa. She competed at her first Paralympics in Beijing in 2008, then in London and Rio de Janeiro in 2012 and 2016 respectively.
In 2018, she became the first African wheelchair tennis player to compete in the Australian Open, the French Open, Wimbledon and the US Open in the same calendar year.
She also participated in the Paralympics which were held in Tokyo in September this year. She was recently honoured with Gsport16’s Sasol Global Woman in Sport and Brand South African Paralympic Sport Star Award.
Montjane was also quoted to have said she is honoured and grateful for the award. “What makes a great athlete is their determination and their courage to just keep on going despite all the challenges because it’s challenging on the field, but you just keep your head up and keep on going despite those challenges.”