Waterpolo champ makes nationals
Jessica who is currently in Grade 10 at Amanzimtoti High was recently selected for the SA Junior National Waterpolo Championships which will take place from Saturday, 21 March.
“Waterpolo isn’t just a sport to Jessica Erasmus. It has become a lifestyle.” These were the words of Amanzimtoti High School’s coach, Greg Thomas who saw the talent and potential of Jessica almost three years ago during an open day. Without knowing the young girl at the time, he wrote down on a piece of paper, KwaZulu-Natal water polo next to her name. And a few months later, his prophecy came to life.
Jessica who is currently in Grade 10 at Amanzimtoti High was recently selected for the SA Junior National Waterpolo Championships which will take place from Saturday, 21 March. She has been training extensively and has been placed on a special diet in preparation for the championships.
She trains three to four hours a day and an additional two hours aside from her regular sessions. Training sessions include weekends.
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Jessica said, “Being selected for this squad is my greatest achievement so far. It was so unexpected. I never believed that I was good enough at first. But, I push myself and give it my all. I am extremely proud of myself.”
She has also managed to perform well in her academics and leads a balanced lifestyle. Initially, she was a raked number nine in canoeing, however, she gave up the sport, when she became more passionate about water polo. She has also been to training camps in Johannesburg this year and will be participating in another camp in Durban soon. In her spare time, she enjoys swimming and playing ‘garden’ rugby and cricket.
She thanks her parents, coach and sister, Stephane for motivating her and giving her healthy competition. She was also recently part of the Amanzimtoti High water polo team that secured the second spot at the Thomas Moore Invitational Challenge.
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