Tough road ahead as SA team chase medals in Tokyo

Ongoing troubles around the world nearly saw the Olympic Games being cancelled.

Now, with the additional struggles we are facing as a nation, the Tokyo showpiece couldn’t come at a better time.

Major sports events have a history of lifting South Africa’s morale and bringing us together.

And while the Springboks will do well to secure a rare series victory over the British and Irish Lions, it’s not quite the same as a World Cup.

As much as a series win would be a welcome boost to rugby fans, for South Africans who don’t watch rugby, they are unlikely to relate.

Previously, home World Cups have been key in terms of nation-building, including the 1995 Rugby World Cup and the 2010 Fifa World Cup.

The Springboks’ victory in Japan in 2019, however, proved that we can also be lifted by triumphs abroad.

So our best athletes will return to Tokyo this month in search of similar celebrations at the multi-sport Games.

For some viewers, motivation will be derived from the strugglers and the battlers who try scrape their way through the opening rounds, punching above their weight to overcome the odds.

For others, a rare opportunity to watch their favourite codes being contested at the highest level will keep them glued to their screens.

But the one thing that is guaranteed to give us all reason to smile will be successful results. We need medals.

The national team has had a rough build-up to the Games.

The Covid pandemic and subsequent lockdown affected the athletes’ preparations, as did travel restrictions in their attempts to both qualify and fine-tune for the showpiece.

Perhaps even more alarming in terms of their mental preparation, while the Olympic athletes were boarding their flights this week, South Africa was burning as looters ran riot.

Realistically, the athletes are up against a wall.

Wayde van Niekerk’s form is still unclear, Jordy Smith is out injured, the Blitzboks have already had to negotiate quarantine in Tokyo, and the country’s best athlete, Caster Semenya, will be watching the Games at home.

After bagging 10 medals at the Rio Olympics five years ago, the SA team will have to rely on miracles from multiple gods if they are going to rake in double figures again.

Considering the chaos they’ve had to negotiate in the build-up, however, a handful of medals will be a valuable return from the national squad, and hopefully we’ll have at least a few athletes stepping on the podium.

Every one of them will give us reason to smile, and the timing couldn’t be better.

We’ve had enough reasons to frown.