Cameron van der Burgh

Cameron was a South African breaststroke sprint specialist and multi-time Olympian. Born May 25, 1988, Van Der Burgh is originally from Pretoria, where he attended Glenstantia Primary School and matriculated at Crawford College. He later studied financial management at UNISA.

He started swimming at a young age. His parents had steered their youngest into sport to channel the excess energy that had seen him diagnosed with a mild form of ADD, rather that keep him dosed up on Ritalin, which changed his personality and dampened his spirit.

When his local coach Dirk Lange left the country unexpectedly to return to his native Germany, Cameron was left with no one to oversee him on the pool deck. Cam approached an old coach of his, Francois Boshoff, who had retired to a small town. For a while, he traveled every Tuesday so he could fly down for two days to get the benefit of Francois’s technical coaching, in between doing his strength training - so important for a sprinter - in Pretoria, with his strength coach Naat Laubscher.
His training partner Guilio Zorrzi won a bronze medal at the 2013 FINA World Championships, where Cameron won the gold. 

Early career
Van Der Burgh first broke out in 2007 when he qualified for his first World Championships and picked up a bronze medal. By 2009 he was well on his way to a World Record at the South African Nationals. Already swimming a great meet Van Der Burgh broke the World Record in semi-final of the 50-meter breaststroke, shaving some time off of a seven-year old record. In the same year he won the world title in the event in Rome, winning his first gold medal from a World Championships.

2008 Beijing Olympics
Van Der Burgh qualified for the Beijing Olympics just moments after being recognized on the international scene for the first time. In Beijing he advanced to the semi-finals of the 100-meter breast, but failed to qualify for the championship final after finishing 5th in his heat. He also competed on the 4×100-meter medley relay, which finished 7th overall.

2010-2011
After breaking his first World Record Van Der Burgh took on the 2010 Commonwealth Games, where he took gold in the 50-meter breast in a new Commonwealth Games Record. Later in the year he swam at the 2010 Short Course World Championships, this time taking another world title in the 100-meter breast. At the 2011 South African National Championships, Van Der Burgh took gold in the 50-meter breast setting the world’s leading time.

2012 London Olympics 
After racking up a few medals in international and national competitions, Van Der Burg was prepared going into London. With the super suit era behind him, he raced to gold in the 100-meter breast after taking out the first 50 meters in a blazing split, and broke the World Record in the process.

London’s dolphin kick dilemma 
After picking up his first Olympic gold medal Van Der Burgh then made headlines after admitting that he had cheated in the underwater pullout part of the race. Underwater video clearly showed Van Der Burgh completed three dolphin kicks after diving into the water off the blocks. Many swimmers in the field could be seen doing the same, and controversy erupted when he mentioned that, “Everybody’s doing it … not everybody, but 99 per cent.” The controversy forced FINA to have to act on new dolphin kick regulation.

2013 World Championships
After originally releasing a statement that he would miss the 2013 World Championships due to a shoulder injury, Van Der Burgh’s name was on South Africa’s World Championship Team. He competed in the meet as the current World Record holder, but was just a half second off of his best time set in London. He touched in the wall in 2nd to Christian Sprenger.  A few nights later he rebounded to out-touch Sprenger for gold in the 50.

2014 awards 
In 2014 Van Der Burgh was one of 54 people announced as a recipient of the 2014 National Orders. He earned an Order of Ikhamanga, which “recognises South African citizens who have excelled in the fields of arts, culture, literature, music, journalism, and sport.” The award came just a few months after Van Der Burgh was an honorable mention for the 2013 Swammy Award for the Male African Swimmer of the Year.

2015 World Championships 
As just one of five swimmers that South Africa sent to the 2015 World Championships, Van Der Burgh was lined up to swim his two signature events. In the preliminary heats of the 50-meter breast Van Der Burgh shocked when he swam under the World Record time by just a few hundredths of a second. Although he broke the Record in the preliminaries, he couldn’t crack the time in the semi’s or finals, losing out to GBR’s up-and-comer Adam Peaty. In the 100-meter event Van Der Burgh was up once again against Peaty. The two approached the race with pretty different styles — Van Der Burgh took the race out in a nearly World Record 50-meter pace and Peaty took out the race nearly half of a second behind. Van Der Burgh couldn’t hold on the last 50 meters as Peaty had a strong finish, pushing Van Der Burgh to 2nd by just .07 seconds.

2016 Rio Olympics

In the 100 meter breaststroke, Van Der Burgh was again pitted against heavy favorite, Adam Peaty. At the halfway point, Van Der Burgh turned in second behind Peaty. Over the final stretch, it was a battle for second with Peaty a body length ahead for the gold. Van Der Burgh held on to take the silver in 58.69. He also competed in the 200 meter breaststroke, finishing 26th, and the 4×100 meter medley relay where South Africa finished 13th.

2017 World Championships

Van Der Burgh only swam the 50 meter breaststroke in Budapest after pulling out the 100. He touched home in 26.60 to take the bronze medal. He was just 0.08 behind Joao Gomes who took the silver. Peaty again won the gold medal.

2018 Commonwealth Games

Van Der Burgh set a personal best in the 50 breaststroke (26.58) en route to the gold medal at the Commonwealth Games. He also earned a bronze in the 100 breast (59.44).

2018 Short Course World Championships

On day 2 of the competition, van der Burgh touched first in the men’s 100 breast, starting with an explosive 1st 50 and hanging on to the lead through the 2nd. This was his first short course world title in the event since 2010, and his 2nd in the event overall. Moments after being crowned world champ, he announced he would be retiring after the competition. In the last swim of his career, on the last day of the meet, van der Burgh once again exploded off the blocks and never looked back, touching first in the 50 breast with a textile world record of 25.41. This was the second-fastest performance ever, overshadowed only by his world record from 2009.

https://swimswam.com/bio/cameron-van-der-burgh/ 

Die groot Olympiese droom

25/07/2016

Die swemmer Cameron van der Burgh het in 2010 by die Statebondspele Suid-Afrikaners se harte aangegryp. Nie net oor die twee goue medaljes wat hy in die 50 m- en 100 m-borsslag losgeswem het nie, maar ook oor die woorde “Ke nako” wat met ’n swart pen op sy handpalms geskryf was. Toe hy sy medalje op die podium ontvang, het hy sy hande triomfantelik gelig met die woorde duidelik sigbaar: “Die tyd is hier!”

Cameron was op skool ’n veelsydige sportman wat in atletiek, krieket en sokker uitgeblink het en hom eers op 16 werklik op swem toegelê het. Hy is ook die eerste Suid-Afrikaanse swemmer wat plaaslik afgerig is en daarin kon slaag om ’n wêreldrekord op te stel – dit boonop op ’n jeugdige twintig jaar. Vir hom was Ryk Neethling ’n rolmodel, en hy waardeer die ambassadeurswerk wat mense soos Ryk en Roland Schoeman vir Suid-Afrikaanse swem gedoen het. Danksy die groep swemmers was daar skielik meer borgskappe vir swemmers beskikbaar.

Die 2012 Olimpiese Spele was die tweede waaraan Cameron deelgeneem het. Ons kyk terug na sy voorbereiding vir daai Spele:

“Ek dink hierdie gaan die Spele van my lewe wees en dis waar die kaf van die koring geskei word. Al was ek teleurgesteld met my vertoning in Beijing, was dit ’n wonderlike ondervinding en Londen gaan anders wees. Hierdie keer weet ek presies wat om te verwag. Ek is op die oomblik baie gelukkig met my prestasie in die swembad, ek dink al die harde werk wat ons die afgelope paar jaar gedoen het, is besig om vrugte af te werp. Ek dink die swemmer wat dit gaan regkry om koel en kalm te bly, en op die presiese oomblik die regte ding te doen, is die een wat met die medalje sal huis toe gaan.”

Cameron het baie waardering vir sy mense wat hom al die jare ondersteun het. Veral sy ma, Beverley, wat al die rondrywerk moes doen, verdien beslis ’n groot dankie, sê hy. Sy was ook die een wat altyd nagelees het en seker gemaak het hy kry die regte voeding.

Hy sê swem verg baie harde werk, toewyding, vasbyt en ure alleen in die swembad. Maar, sê hy laggend, dit is nie so ’n slegte plek om te wees nie. Hy is ook ’n finansiële beplanner, maar vanjaar het hy so ’n bietjie afgevat en net op sy swemloopbaan gekonsentreer. Ná die Spele sal hy kyk hoe hy in die swembad gevaar het, en dan sal hy oor die toekoms besluit.

“’n Mens leer gewoonlik net uit jou foute, jy leer nie wanneer jy alles regkry nie.”

Wanneer ek misluk, besluit ek altyd ek sal die mense verkeerd bewys. Dan pas ek aan en sorg dat dit nie weer gebeur nie. Dit is daardie veggees wat ’n mens motiveer om harder te werk en so te keer dat jy weer dieselfde foute begaan.”

“’n Olimpiese medalje is elke jong sportster se droom. Sonder daardie droom sal jy nooit iets bereik nie, want dit motiveer jou om hard te werk. Sommige mense se drome word waar, ander s’n nie. Ek is gelukkig dat my droom om aan die Olimpiese Spele deel te neem waar geword het.”

*Cameron het by die 2012 Olimpiese Spele in Londen die wêreldrekord in die 100 m-borsslag gebreek in ’n tyd van 58.46 sekondes.

https://www.rooirose.co.za/die-groot-olimpiese-droom/

Cameron van der Burgh on ‘winning the swimming game’, his new life at a London hedge fund, and his mental health struggles

04 DECEMBER 2020

Former Olympic champion swimmer Cameron van der Burgh now works in London as a hedge fund analyst

It was at the afterparty for the Rio 2016 Olympics that the seeds of Cameron van der Burgh’s move to a London hedge fund were sown.

Days earlier, the South African had been beaten into second place in the men’s 100m breaststroke final by his great rival, Britain’s Adam Peaty.

Van der Burgh was not finished with swimming yet, but he already had one eye on a second career away from the pool, in finance.

 By coincidence, also attending the Rio afterparty was celebrated hedge fund manager Pierre Andurand, once a promising swimmer himself.

Van der Burgh recalls: “We were introduced by mutual friends, through the understanding that I enjoyed financial markets and I’d heard of Pierre Andurand, because he’s a king of oil. 

“We got chatting at the party, and instead of me spending the night partying Rio style, I was talking markets and finance with one of the legends of the game.”

How Van der Burgh ended up at a hedge fund

Van der Burgh had first taken an interest in business as a schoolboy, when he and three friends won a nationwide virtual trading competition.

“When I look back, we knew nothing. But we won and that competitive edge in me from swimming just really enjoyed the trading,” he says.

 When his swimming career took off, he reserved 10 per cent of his earnings to make “educated guesses” on the real-life markets.

He studied a business degree while rising to the top of his sport, winning Olympic gold in London in 2012.

And when he decided to hang up the Speedos six years later, his thoughts turned back to the same city. 

Van der Burgh made contact with Andurand, who invited him to his hedge fund’s Knightsbridge offices.

“I didn’t know I was being interviewed but I was,” he laughs. “Then when I got back to South Africa there was an offer on the door.”

 London has been the city of my life’

Van der Burgh’s focus as an analyst at Andurand Capital is on climate and energy, “the kind of stuff that gets me up in the morning and gets me super-excited”. 

The commodity-focused hedge fund has had a bumper 2020, after betting against the price of oil early in the pandemic.

“I sort of had my Olympics this year because our hedge fund is the best performing in Europe at the moment,” he says.

Away from work, Van der Burgh and wife Nefeli Valakelis welcomed a baby boy, Harry, into the family in September.

They live in Fulham, 5,000 miles north of his native Pretoria but just a short journey from the scene of his Olympic success.

 “At that time [2012] the thought never crossed my mind to come to London but it’s definitely been the city of my life,” he says.

Rivalry and friendship with Peaty

As a swimmer, Van der Burgh did it all: Olympic champion, six world titles, four-time Commonwealth champion, multiple world records.

He won the 50m and 100m breaststroke double at every African Games from 2007 to 2015. He won the shorter distance at three consecutive Commonwealth Games. And he once went 24 races unbeaten.

The emergence of Peaty, who grew up idolising Van der Burgh, ended his dominance.

Peaty took his 100m breaststroke title at the 2014 Commonwealth Games and did the same at the next two major championships, culminating in Rio 2016.

Van der Burgh won Olympic gold in the men’s 100m breaststroke at London 2012

He replaced Van der Burgh as the man to beat over 50m too, until the tables were turned at the 2018 Commonwealth Games. It was Peaty’s first defeat over that distance for four years.

“The years that I was winning all the time were a lot of fun, of course. But you don’t have as strong experiences,” he says. 

“When Adam and I were really going at each other at a top level of performance, competitively it was amazing. 

“You elevate yourself when you have somebody to push against. Sporting rivalries are what stories and memories are built on.”

Van de Burgh’s rivalry with Peaty was fiercely contested but always good natured, and the pair remain firm friends.

“He and I had baby boys a week apart, so we’ve been chatting and sharing photos every now and then of how cute they look and how they’re keeping us up at night,” he says.

How swimming helped Van der Burgh manage ADHD

A swimming champion turned financial hot-shot sounds like an alpha male caricature, but Van der Burgh is far from it.

With disarming honesty and sincerity he details his own mental health challenges and how they have informed his work with sport foundation Laureus. 

As a child he was diagnosed with ADHD, was introverted and lacked confidence. Swimming proved not only an outlet but a remedy and proved personally transformative. 

Those unwelcome feelings linger, however, exacerbated by lockdown conditions which have placed extra strain on home lives and shut off his usual outlet, the pool.

“The hard part is mentally. It’s difficult to delineate the difference between when I finish working and when my personal life starts,” he says. 

South African Van der Burgh now works with sports foundation Laureus (Photo by Jan Kruger/Getty Images for Laureus)

“Sometimes you’ll be having a bad day. I’ll step off my desk and five seconds later I’m in the living room with my wife. You’re not physically there because you’re thinking about something else. 

“I’ve now decided that when I switch off, I switch off. I put the computer away. And then my wife and I go for 30-minute walk. 

“That period allows me to have a break and distinguish what’s work and what’s play, and that’s helped. A lot of people suffer with that and I suffer with that a lot. It’s very difficult.”

South African Van der Burgh now works with sports foundation Laureus

‘Sometimes maybe I’m not a nice guy to be around’

Van der Burgh loves walking by the river – “water is part of life for me” – and, in the absence of swimming pools, took up running.

He runs for around 40 minutes each morning, longer at weekends, but is no elite athlete on land, he admits.

“I look like a proper fish out of water running down by the Thames. Often I’ll see young girls or old men flying past me and I feel a little bit silly. But it’s something that I need to do.” 

Van der Burgh and Britain’s Adam Peaty enjoyed a fierce rivalry but remain good friends

The exercise makes Van der Burgh “calm and relaxed. I don’t get aggressive, I don’t get as irritated and I can be a kind human being. 

“Sometimes I get irritated quickly and maybe I’m not a nice guy to be around for my wife or co-workers. So it’s something that it’s really important for me to focus on every day.”

This week he shared his first-hand experience by speaking at a Laureus event focused on mental health and wellbeing. 

“It’s all about trying to convey that you can change and give yourself a better life,” he says.

‘I played and won the swimming game’

Van der Burgh concedes that he misses the competitive thrill of swimming and is considering taking part in veterans’ competitions.

“Not that I’m coming for Adam Peaty or anything,” he laughs. “But maybe I’ll come break some masters world records in the process. That would be a lot of fun.” 

He has watched with interest as Peaty and many of the world’s other leading professionals have competed in the glitzy, Gen-Z orientated International Swimming League.

The ISL consulted Van der Burgh on the show format before its launch. But his new career precluded any further collaboration – in or out of the pool.

“They did mention coming out [of retirement] for a sneaky 50m but after this year, the guys are swimming incredibly well, so I think maybe I timed my departure very well.

“I got all the golds and world records I could, so I’m very happy with the way I left off. I think it was the right time for me. 

“While I do miss the competitive spirit of it, I’m extremely happy in my new career and what I’m doing. I feel like I’m growing. 

“You play different games in life. I’ve played and won the swimming game, I’m happy and it was time to step off. I’m playing the family game now and hopefully trying to win at that.” 

Cameron van der Burgh spoke at the Laureus Sport for Good Mental Health and Wellbeing through Sport Forum, presented by EACT Jockey Club Active Community Programme, on Thursday. The online event focused on the mental and emotional problems young people face, and explored how to help them cope with various challenges through physical development and exercise.

 Olympics gold medallist and Laureus Ambassador Cameron van der Burgh paid a visit to the Hounslow Swimming Club to see the fantastic work being carried out to provide children and young people with access and opportunity in the pool.

13 Jul 2022