Owen van Renen, who is well known to many of the Masters swimmers, passed away at 4 am this morning 17 May 2022 in Johannesburg. He was Joyce Fyfe’s twin and Merle Angelos’ brother. The van Renen brother and sisters contributed immensely to South African masters swimming at club, regional and national levels. Our thoughts and prayers are with Joyce and Merle and the wider family.
Owen served on the SAMS Committee for many years. He was also editor of the SAMS newsletter and Admin of the SA Masters Swimming Facebook page.
Wolfgang Fechter – outgoing SAMS President
We are very excited to announce that we have started to process and load most of the photos for the 37th South African Masters Swimming Championship 2022 held in Cape Town on the TOGmatiX website, to view and order your photos please follow the link below:
https://www.togmatix.co.za/76FHocQp
Participants with packages will be emailed instructions soon on the ordering process for your photos.
Hi everyone.
- The next Tshwane Masters swimming long course championship will take place on 19 and 20 February 2022. To enter, please complete this Google form.
- Please distribute this info to your members.
Link:
https://forms.gle/pCKEgaNCxZiq9diD7
Kind regards
Melissa Conradie
Dear Swimmer,
Swimmer questionnaire
Most of you know me as a passionate masters swimmer and coach. The SAMS committee voted in favour of distributing my research study, titled “Health status of South African masters swimmers, their medication use and attitudes towards doping” to you. The focus of my M.Sc. study is to evaluate the health status and associated medicine use in swimmers 18 years and older. With more adults swimming, it is important to know their health status as exercise and participation in competition carries an increased risk of cardiac events and injuries. This will help organisers to better plan events such as the aQuelle Midmar Mile and other sporting events.
The questionnaire also includes doping questions as many older athletes take some form of chronic and/or pain medication to treat their illness and/or injuries. Some of the medications taken by swimmers might contain performance enhancing substances. Please keep any medication that you currently use handy so that you can list them. You will also be asked questions on your attitude towards intentional and unintentional doping.
I would be very grateful if you can further distribute the questionnaire to any South African swimmers known to you that are 18 years and older.
Participation in the research is entirely voluntary. If you are willing to participate in the study, please click on the link below or paste it into your browser. The data collected by the online survey will be anonymous. The questionnaire will take around 5-10 minutes to complete.
Click here to open and respond to the Questionnaire
Thank you so much for your time.
Best Regards,
Annemarie Dressler
Annemarie.dressler1@gmail.com
0828013531
eThekwini, 4 January 2021
Dear fellow Masters swimmers!
I hope you have celebrated a safe and healthy Christmas and I wish you a blessed 2021.
Given the development and severity of the second Covid-19 wave in SA as well as globally and the latest changes in regulations holding a large National gala with masters (which includes many with comorbidities) is not advisable. Consulting with regional presidents, LOC and SAMS committee members the consensus was to postpone by one year at this stage.
The 37th SAMS national masters long course championship as planned for March 2021 is cancelled and postponed by one year to March 2022.
Nationals is our only annual national event held at the end of the summer swim season. After all the thorough preparation we are very grateful that the Cape Town LOC has agreed to host the postponed nationals in March 2022. Exact dates will be communicated when the venues have been confirmed.
Our hospital systems are overburdened. Covid-19 is wreaking havoc in our families, communities and businesses. With the advent of vaccines holding a national gala in 2022 will have a much higher probability of being held responsibly. Please take every effort to get vaccinated, both for your own health and to substantially reduce the risk of holding regional and national galas for masters.
For all participants out of town travel arrangements are taken at great risk of regulations being changed at short notice. For those of you who have booked, we hope you can negotiate that the accommodation and travel booked can be held for one year as nationals will be held at the same location.
The short-course nationals are extended to the end of March 2021 to allow for availability of pools in adjusted regulations and in cognisance of the cancelled national masters long course championship. Currently galas with no visitors are still allowed under level 3.
Please keep safe, wash your hands and sanitise, practise physical distancing and interact socially in a safe manor.
And let’s live our very apt Masters mantra “to swim for fun, fitness and friendship.”
Wolfgang Fechter
President and on behalf of South African Masters Swimming
Dear swimmers
Unfortunately due to a severe leak at Hillcrest pool we need to cancel our gala on Saturday 7 November ☹
The monies will be retained for the Tshwane Champs in February 2021
or if you prefer a refund of your monies please let us know and we will do so.
Thanks so much
Kind regards,
Ingrid
(Ceelies Exco)