Charles "Charl" Bouwer was born in Kimberley in March 1990 where he attended the Elizabeth Conradie School where he was coached by Paralympian Ebert Kleynhans. He moved to Stellenbosch University to study theology and swim under coach Pierre de Roubaix at the Matied SC.

At the 2004 Summer Paralympics he competed in the 100m backstroke, 200m individual medley and 400m freestyle.

At the 2008 Summer Paralympics he competed in S13 100m butterfly, 400m freestyle, 100m freestyle, 100m backstroke, 50m freestyle. He won gold and set a new world record in the 400m freestyle.

At the 2012 Summer Paralympics he participated in the S13 class Men's 50m, 100m and 400m freestyle; 100m butterfly; 100m backstroke and the SM13 Men's 200m individual medley. He won gold in the 50m freestyle.

Former city learner off to compete in Paralympics

24 Aug 2012

FORMER Elizabeth Conradie School learner, Charl Bouwer, who is currently pursuing his studies at Stellenbosch University, will be competing in this year’s Paralympics as part of the 62-strong South African squad.

The team departed for London this week.

The Paralympic Games kick off on Wednesday and ends on September 9. In Beijing four years ago, South Africa came back with 30 medals, 21 of them gold and was placed sixth on the medal table. This year the South African Sports Confederation and Olympic Committee has set a 40-medal target.

Bouwer, who has already taken part in two previous Paralympics, is competing in category S13 events.

Bouwer’s first stint in the Olympics was in 2004 where he competed in the 100-metre backstroke, 200-metre individual medley and 400-metre freestyle.

Four years later in 2008 he competed in numerous events from the 50-metre freestyle to 400-metre freestyle, an event in which he not only won the Paralympic title but also broke the world record.

Bouwer started swimming at a young age, growing up on a farm, and was prompted into swimming competitively when his mother discovered his talent.

Helonie, Bouwer’s mother said yesterday that he started swimming in the rivers and dams on the farm.

“I taught him doggy paddle and then how to swim properly and after that I took him for lessons.”

Bouwer developed Stargardt, a loss of the central vision which af­fects one in 100 people. “One of his school teachers recommended that we take him to have his sight tested. “Although we visited five optometrists, none of them could find anything wrong until a specialist from Bloemfontein diagnosed him with Stargardt.”

Bouwer has been swimming in galas since he was six years old and earned his provincial colours. “While he had to adjust to his vision being impaired, in terms of swimming nothing changed,” his mother said.

Bouwer has always loved swimming and first he did it partly to be with friends. “It was fun to hang out together at the galas,” he said before his departure.

Bouwer said that when his vision became impaired his life changed. “I changed schools and attended Elizabeth Conradie school instead of a government school, but in terms of swimming nothing changed as we got a sponsor and a swimming pool was built for us at school to practice.

“I won my first Nedbank championships at the age of 12 and in 2004 I was the youngest ever member to join the South African squad to attend and participate at the Athens Paralympics.

“I was very young, I can remember it now like it was yesterday. I really love being at the Paralympics, competing and also mixing with athletes from all around the world.

Bouwer’s discipline also helped him to be a good swimmer. He pointed out that he attributed the discipline to his parents.

“It is such an honour and privilege to be representing my country and compete for medals in South African colours in London.

Charl Bouwer swem SA se negende Paralimpiese medalje los

2012-09-02

LONDEN. – Die gesiggestremde Stellenbosse swemmer Charl Bouwer het gisteraand vroeg hier Suid-Afrika se negende medalje op vanjaar se Paralimpiese Spele verower.

Die 22-jarige boorling van Kimberley het in die 100m-vryslag die silwermedalje verower nadat hy eergisteraand die titel in die 50-vryslag gebuit het. Bouwer het sy teologie-studies vir ’n jaar opgeskort om vir die Paralimpiese Spele voor te berei. Nadat hy met die omdraaislag nog derde was, het Bouwer sterk geëindig en die beste tyd van sy loopbaan twee keer op dieselfde dag verbeter – eers met ’n tyd van 53.28 s en toe in die eindronde met 52.97 s. (Lees ook die berig op Sport24).

Gisteraand laat sou die Pretoriase lemnaeller Oscar Pistorius (klas T43) sy titel in die 200m verdedig. Sy kamermaat, Arnu Fourie (klas T44), ’n ouditeur op Stellenbosch, was in dieselfde wedloop. Fourie het een geamputeerde been, terwyl albei Pistorius se bene weens ’n geboortedefek onder die knie geamputeer is.

Pistorius het in sy uitdun voor 80000 juigende en jillende toeskouers behoorlik lemme neergelê en ’n nuwe wêreldrekord van 21.30 s aangeteken. Dit was hoendervel mooi.

Met dié kragvertoning het hy ’n duidelike boodskap aan sy teenstanders gestuur dat hy nie hier is om op sy louere te rus nie.

Fourie het ook in sy klas ’n wêreldrekord van 22.57s opgestel.

Suid-Afrika spog nou met twee goue, drie silwer- en vier bronsmedales. Op die vorige Paralimpiese Spele vier jaar gelede in Beijing het die span 30 medaljes verower, waarvan 21 goud was.

Die ander lede van die span wat eergisteraand medaljes ver-ower het, is die swemmer Achmat Hassiem (100m-vlinderslag, brons) en die atlete Jonathan Ntutu (100, brons), Teheboho Mokgalagadi (100, silwer), Dyan Buys (100, silwer) en Anrune Liebenberg (200, brons).

Vroeër het die swemmers Natalie du Toit (100-vlinderslag, goud) en die siggestremde Hendri Herbst (100-vryslag, brons) ook medaljes gewen.

Pistorius het gesê dit is altyd “baie spesiaal” om ’n wêreldrekord op te stel en hy was baie opgewonde oor die eindronde.

Pistorius, die eerste gestremde atleet in die geskiedenis wat toegelaat is om aan die Olimpiese Spele deel te neem, het weer benadruk die 400 is waarskynlik sy beste item en dat die 100 die moeilikste sal wees.

- Volksblad

Charl Bouwer Sets Paralympic World Record in South Africa

18 April 2013

PORT ELIZABETH, South Africa, April 18. AFTER a two-day delay due to a burst pipe, and a switch to a pure timed finals schedule, the South African Nationals returned with a bang as Charl Bouwer downed the world record in the S13 200-meter free event.

Bouwer clocked a time of 1:56.78, demolishing the previous mark of 2:02.12 set by Greece's Charalampos Taiganidis in 2006.

22 August 2013 - Charl Bouwer won three bronze medals and a silver at the IPC championships in Canada. His sister Helena Bouwer tries to take them from him.

10 Oktober 2013  Maties Sport Ere kleure dinee - Ilse Hayes en Charl Bouwer as Sportman en -vrou met Gestremdheid, saam met Dir Maties Sport Jackie Wiese

Paralympic gold medallist Bouwer calls quits on career

April 16, 2015

Let there be no doubt about it… Team South Africa has something of a mountain to climb if they are going to get close to emulating their achievements at the 2012 Paralympics in London.

Three-time Paralympian swimmer Charl Bouwer is the latest ‘casualty’ from the team of 2012 who won’t be part of the Rio equation. The visually impaired Kimberley-based swimmer has hung up his costume and swopped the swimming pool for the business pool.

That means he joins a list of high profile athletes who won’t be in Rio.
Fellow swimmer and Paralympics legend Natalie du Toit called it quits after the London games while track athlete Oscar Pistorius was found guilty of culpable homicide and is still involved in a protracted legal battle.
Fact of the matter is that of the 29 medals won by the SA Paralympians in London, more than a third were won by this trio of athletes.
The trio won 10 medals in total (six gold and four silvers). So there’s no getting over the fact that the current generation of Paralympic talent are going to have to step up to the plate in a big way.

Now 25 years old, Bouwer, who won three medals in London (one gold and two silvers) has been toying with the idea of giving up for some time and the business world is calling him.

He told Road to Rio 2016: ‘I came to a point in my life where I realised that I have to start focusing on the bigger picture in life. I simply can’t swim for ever and then ask myself the day when I stop ‘what will I do now?’.

‘I’m very privileged to have parents who have also taught me a lot in life and who are great mentors. I’ve started my own business here in Kimberley where I manufacture tombstones and table tops.  My products are a lot cheaper than granite and is therefore more affordable for the average guy on the street.

‘I’ve wanted to stop for a while now but ended up just accepted having to go to training and then if I was chosen for the team I’d go along. I think this was because I liked the idea of quitting more than actually doing it. I think it’s hard for anyone who has gone through training for an Olympics or Paralympics to finally call it quits.’
But Bouwer was quick to thank all those behind his impressive career that saw him swimming at the Athens, Beijing and London Paralympics.

‘I must say I’ve had great coaches in my life. Pierre de Roubaix is the coach I respect the most in life and I’ve have learned a lot from him. Not only in the swimming pool but in life itself.

‘The years I trained at Maties with Pierre must have been the hardest training I have ever done. Some weeks we swam between 80 to 100 kilometres. For someone coming from a small place like me, that took some getting used to. Thankfully Pierre and Heerden Herman [himself an Olympic swimmer] was there to help me get used to all of that. I’ve learned so much in my life from the sport and without my swimming I don’t think I’d be the same person I am today. For the rest of my life I’ll always look back at my swimming and I think it will help me in my life.

‘The swimming was hard work but I think that hard work made it so much more worthwhile. Pierre use to say that ‘if it was easy everybody would have done it’. That meant a lot to me and I know I will always remember it and use it whenever something gets hard to do.’

He also took time out to thank the administrators behind the scene. ‘I can only say thank you to SASCOC and Swimming South Africa. Without them, I would never have reached the same heights of my swimming career. I’ll miss my swimming days and will defiantly miss the competition but I’ll just have to take my competitive spirit to my business and compete in business.’
The lanky swimmer says two highlights stand out in his career. ‘The first was when I won my first Paralympic gold medal in Beijing and broke the world record in the 400 free. The second was when I won my second gold medal at the London 2012 Games in the 50m free.’

And before he turned his attention away from times to tombstones and table tops he left some advice to the next generation of swimming. ‘Do the hard work and never give up. Just to be able to swim at an event means that you have got a talent from God. Just to be able to swim is a very big and great talent to have. Use it and work hard at it. Remember, no pain no game and swimming is all about the pain.’

Picture of Bouwer, courtesy of Wessel Oosthuizen/SASPA

Charl Bouwer en Ilse Hayes - 2012

Meet Alwyn Uys

This paid off in kind - on the 2nd of June, Alwyn became the first-ever South African paraplegic to complete an Ironman 70.3 in a WHEELCHAIR! Words don't do this feat (or our pride) justice - Alwyn, we are beyond proud of you. We can't wait to see what you do next!

Fight To The Finish

Men's Health South Africa|July 2019

Alwyn Uys glided onto the pink Ironman 70.3 carpet, the arms that steered him through a 1.9km swim, 90.1km cycle and 21.1km run in front of him, lifting only to wipe away a tear. He heard the crowd cheering, felt their energy; and the loudest applause he’d ever heard washed over him like the waves of the Durban sea he’d swum in earlier. Crossing the half Ironman finish line had always been a dream of his. Now, against all odds, it had come true.

BROKEN DREAMS

Alwyn had spent his university years playing for a formidable Maties rugby team, but was benched after a persistent arm injury. Wrapped up in trying to find out who he was if he couldn’t be a rugby player, he turned to triathlon, with the Ironman start line fixed in his mind.

Then – for one second – he took his eyes off the road. Alwyn’s car hit a dip between dirt and tarmac, went spinning, and he was flung through the windscreen. One second: the length of time he took his eyes off the road. One second: how long, he recalls, it took his car to crash. One life-changing second.

“The Ironman is known for being the toughest endurance race for any athlete. And when I was paralysed, I took a knock – a big one. Mentally, it broke me. I was this strong, capable guy who could do anything, physically. And in an instant, I’m sitting in a wheelchair, helpless. Dependent on people around me. “And that broke me. I used to be the one who was able to help others; and now? I couldn’t even turn myself around in my bed…” He laughs, and makes sure to add, “…at the time of the accident. I can do that pretty well now.”

Braving the current: South African paraplegic athlete conquers the Robben Island swim – and some ‘dark moments’

Alwyn Uys endured the ocean currents and completed a gruelling 8km swim from Robben Island to Bloubergstrand last week, making him the first paraplegic athlete to complete the crossing. Braving the currents of Table Bay proved to be challenging, and he admits there were some ‘dark moments’ amidst the ocean swells. 

Thirty-year-old paraplegic athlete, Alwyn Uys is known as a trailblazer in his field. In June 2019, he became the first paraplegic South African to complete a half Ironman, and earlier this year, he went on to become the first male para-athlete in the world to do the virtual Comrades in a racing wheelchair, on 14 June. 

On 11 December, Uys braved the swells of Table Bay and took on the 7,687m swim from Robben Island to Bloubergstrand, becoming the first paraplegic athlete to successfully complete the crossing. 

In December 2014, Uys nearly died when he was involved in a motor vehicle crash, and became paralysed from the waist down. He would never have considered attempting this swim or completing the Ironman before his crash, he said. 

Other categories of people with disabilities have completed the Robben Island to Bloubergstrand crossing before, such as quadriplegic athlete Pieter du Preez, in 2017. 

Inspirational Uys

“Inspirational”, that’s how renowned British-South African swimmer Lewis Pugh described Uys’ swim, which took place last Friday. This crossing, for Pugh, an able-bodied endurance swimmer, is a difficult feat. “It’s always challenging, I’ve never done an easy Robben Island swim,” said Pugh. 

“The Robben Island swim always throws something at you… But your first Robben Island swim is always special. That moment when you put your feet down and you feel sand, is a beautiful feeling,” says Pugh. 

Pugh was the 50th person to ever complete the Robben Island to Bloubergstrand swim, at the age of 17, in 1987. “You can now, on a good day, get 50 people doing it – it’s become that popular,” says Pugh. 

The crossing, which took Uys three hours and three minutes, was mentally unlike anything he had done before and “completely unique” in its challenges. 

“In the ocean, you are at the mercy of all the elements,” said Uys. 

Uys, who grew up in the Eastern Cape and now resides in Durbanville, and his trainer, Keith Jansen, were first scheduled to attempt the swim together in December 2019, but due to poor weather conditions, it never took place, Jansen told Daily Maverick. A year on, Uys completed the swim across Table Bay with Jansen in the support boat.

“I think it was in our favour that it got postponed. At that time we didn’t see it that way. But I think it definitely played into our favour,” said Jansen. 

Weather conditions 

For Uys to safely attempt the swim – without risking hyperthermia – the water temperature needed to be higher than 15°C, Jansen explained. And on the morning of 11 December, the conditions were perfect. 

“The water temperature was 16°C when we jumped in, which was absolutely fantastic. It was a little bit of an overcast morning and there was no real wind,” he said. 

The boat departed from the Oceana Power Boat Club in Granger Bay to Robben Island, at about 6am that Friday. 

Jansen, who has been Uys’ trainer for a little over two years, accompanied Uys in the support boat to monitor and feed him every 30 minutes. 

“When we started, [Uys] was swimming at about one minute 50 seconds per hundred metre, which is really good for him,” said Jansen.

But, within the first kilometre of swimming, the swell picked up and the current became stronger. 

“I thought I’d be okay, but there was a strong current and I had to fight against [it] the whole time,” said Uys. The side-on current forced him to swim further than expected.

Against the current

“I’ll be honest with you, there were some very dark moments,” said Uys. At around 5km, when the current was at its strongest, he felt as though he was not making any progress. The current was putting pressure on his one side, pushing him away from the shoreline and forcing him to work harder against the swell. 

“It literally felt like I was standing still at one point. And that’s very demoralising,” he said. 

The weather and water conditions turned in the last 1.7km towards the finish, said Jansen. And for a while, Uys was swimming parallel to the beach. “I couldn’t even feed him for that last hour and a half because every time we would’ve stopped, we would have lost about 80 to 120m,” said Jansen. “So he just had to fight along and push through it.”

Uys said once the “two rock islands” at Eden on the Bay came into view, he knew he was almost at the shore. It was then that he was told that he needed to swim his hardest for the next two minutes, in order to get past the rock formation, otherwise he would need to change direction because the current was too strong. But before he knew it, Uys could feel the waves, propelling him toward the beach, where he was surprised with a large crowd of supporters. 

“The next moment I’m sitting on a carpet, and I had to ask myself, ‘did I just do this?’” he said. “It was so surreal at that moment, I think I sat for a good 15 minutes, just taking it all in.”

On the horizon

His next goal is to complete the full Ironman, in 2021. But he is not yet done with swimming. 

“I have an idea that there’s a lot more swimming coming.

“I’ll focus on Ironman for the moment, but I am thinking of another swim. I really enjoyed the swim. It was something so unique,” he said. 

Uys is also currently involved in filming a documentary about his life, including the build-up to and his successful crossing from Robben Island to Blouberg. “The documentary is really about my life story… and everything I went through from a young age; the adversity I faced becoming paralysed… and the pinnacle of it is doing this swim,” said Uys.  

The documentary titled, Against All Odds will be available in late 2021. DM

https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2020-12-18-braving-the-current-south-african-paraplegic-athlete-conquers-the-robben-island-swim-and-some-dark-moments/

Meet the paraplegic tri-athlete who does not let his disability slow him down

7 April 2021

Alwyn Uys wasn’t always smashing athletic records in Ironman competitions and long-distance swimming.

Six years ago he felt like he was “living in a nightmare”. The one-time Maties rugby player had been in a near-fatal car crash and broke his back, leaving him paralysed from the waist down.

“The first time [I heard the news] it felt like I was living someone else’s nightmare. I just could not believe that this is happening to me. It took me years to fully adapt,” he recalls.

It wasn’t an easy process, but Alwyn (30) never gave up on himself, and set his sights on new challenges.

Alwyn Uys wasn’t always smashing athletic records in Ironman competitions and long-distance swimming.

Six years ago he felt like he was “living in a nightmare”. The one-time Maties rugby player had been in a near-fatal car crash and broke his back, leaving him paralysed from the waist down.

“The first time [I heard the news] it felt like I was living someone else’s nightmare. I just could not believe that this is happening to me. It took me years to fully adapt,” he recalls.

It wasn’t an easy process, but Alwyn (30) never gave up on himself, and set his sights on new challenges.

Alwyn completed it in five-and-a-half hours, 30 minutes ahead of his goal of completing the challenge in six hours. He used a handcycle to cycle and a racing wheelchair for the run.

“I wanted to challenge myself. I wanted to see how far I can push it,” he says.

To prepare for sporting events, Alwyn trains for 15 to 20 hours a week, a process he describes as “quite gruelling”.

“The events are tough, but training is where the magic is.”

The most challenging part of the triathlon, he says, was the swim. He prepared by getting up at 5am for a cold-water swim at his local gym.

His favourite of the triathlon activities was cycling because he enjoys “the time I have on the road, that I have with my thoughts and being out in nature”.

Stefan Enslin on ‘Against All Odds: The Alwyn Uys Story’

April 6, 2022

On 13 December 2014 Alwyn Uys, an ambitious young man with a promising aptitude for rugby, had an accident that left him paralyzed from the waist down. Facing a drastically altered life Uys set his mind on a feat never accomplished by a paraplegic athlete: swimming from Robben Island to Eden on the Bay.

Against All Odds: The Alwyn Uys Story documents the inspirational journey to Alwyn’s historic attempt, and the treacherous swim itself. We spoke to director Stefan Enslin about his part in Alwyn’s mission to inspire others.

How did you become aware of Alwyn Uys and his plans to swim the Robben Island crossing?

One of my friends, Nelis Engelbrecht, followed Alwyn on social and arranged to have a coffee and hear his story. After that they contacted me and the rest as they say is history.

We hear Alwyn conceptualize his life as a story through which he’ll be remembered, one he refused to let define him as a promising young man who couldn’t overcome the misfortune that was dealt to him. What was it about Alwyn’s story that drew you to tell it?

In a sense it is very similar to mine. I wasn’t always a filmmaker. After school, life took me in different directions, but my heart always longed to tell stories. And then one day I thought – I don’t want to be 90 years old one day and wonder what my life would look like had I followed my calling.

After the accident, Alwyn wanted to commit suicide – was that really his life story? He had an accident, could not deal with being paralyzed and committed suicide; or was there more to his life than that? And Alwyn has shown how his life is filled with so much beauty because he refused to give up or in. That is very inspirational for me, hence wanting to tell his story.

When showing some footage of Alwyn before his life-changing car accident, these clips and images are often made to resemble old film stock or slide projections. As a director, how did you approach framing Alwyn’s life before he found, as he puts it, his purpose?

I wanted everything before the accident to be good memories of a full life. Hence the resemblance of old film stock or slide projections – to show how this life is part of beautiful and good memories. From there on, as he puts it, his purpose-driven life is filled with shots where the sun is bright, almost like a spotlight shining on him, to highlight this purpose he has found and how that impacts everyone around him.

Did your view on the nature of the story you would be telling change at all as you became involved, as it progressed or as you were putting it together in editing? Did you ever believe Alwyn might not be able to accomplish his goal?

To be honest, there was never a moment where I doubted that Alwyn would be able to accomplish his goal. He is one of the strongest minded people I have ever met. The only way he won’t be able to accomplish his goal is if God stops him. We had tense moments due to the weather not playing along, but Alwyn even stopped those fears due to his incredible faith and believe in God.

How important do you consider Alwyn’s faith to his story, and the film itself?

It is the single most important aspect. And I get the question a lot. Why did you not go deeper into his faith and the darkness of his depression to the point of wanting to commit suicide? The reason is simple; if you meet Alwyn you will know that his faith is so strong he does not have to ponder over things. And I wanted to highlight that by not going deeper and lingering on details of trying to get out of his depression. He said God told him He still has plans for Alwyn and that was it, Alwyn didn’t commit suicide.

Cape Town looks very dour throughout the film, is this simply because in the present narrative-thread you’re grounding us in Alwyn’s surroundings mostly around the time of his swim, or because you wanted to suggest a mood going into his Herculean effort?

I wanted the focus to be on Alwyn. Basically to let him stand out as the hero in the dour appearance. That way all his achievements, especially the Robben Island swim, could be experienced with him. Doing the swim even for an abled swimmer is not easy so you can only imagine what Alwyn went through and I wanted the viewer to experience all of that with Alwyn.

There is much focus on how difficult the 7.5km swim was to endure in the moment. Typically in sports documentaries the hard work of training can be where we dwell in the dark, and the race is a triumph as reward, but you take some time to zero in on the exertion, the mental blocks that present themselves as it goes on. Why?

The reason was because the training is almost the easy part but during a race, much like life, we get tested to our utmost limits. And again, I wanted the audience to experience these difficult moments with Alwyn, because if he can overcome these turbulent conditions (the water was freezing and the current incredibly strong) I can help the viewer, through Alwyn, to believe that they are also capable of overcoming all odds.

The film ends on a promise that for Alwyn, this is “Just the beginning”, and indeed he has gone on to complete the Ironman, and has plans to summit Kilimanjaro. Would you be interested in reuniting to document Alwyn’s climb in some capacity?

Without a shadow of a doubt, I would love to be involved in capturing that incredible feat of summiting Kilimanjaro.

Most powerful films move audiences emotionally, but I think people most often fold the lessons of a film into their lives when they can be sure that what they’re seeing has really happened, as in a documentary. What do you hope people take with them after seeing your film?

That giving up is not an option. Your strength does not lie in your body, it is all in the mind.

Returning to the joys of life

12 June 2024

Wheelchair athlete Alwyn Uys (33) from Stellenbosch is a living testament to overcoming adversity and an inspiration to many.

Once an avid rugby player for Stellenbosch University and the Sharks Academy, his life took a dramatic turn on 13 December 2014. A momentary lapse while driving led to a severe car accident, leaving him paraplegic and wheelchair-bound. “It was a huge change and it impacted my life. Everything I used to love to do was now inaccessible to me. I had to change my thinking and how I do life, or I wouldn’t have made it out alive.” Despite the challenges, Uys’ spirit was not broken. He redirected his passion for sports into becoming a para-triathlete, engaging in triathlons, Ironman events and other extreme endurance challenges.

Uys’ achievements include being the first paraplegic in the world to complete the Robben Island crossing successfully. He is also the first South African paraplegic to complete a full-distance Ironman, earning him the SA para-triathlete and para-cycling gold medallist honours.

Uys’ pursuit of freedom and adventure led him to discover the life-changing potential of an off-road wheelchair during a visit to the USA. “I first experienced this in the USA, where they are more freely available for loan at beaches and parks, and it was a game-changer!

“The freedom I experienced was incredible. Now I was able to do the things I love again! I could move around freely. Go to the beach, go and walk my dogs, like I gained a piece of my life back.”

Motivated to continue his active lifestyle, Uys launched a BackaBuddy “freedom-wheels” campaign to raise funds for his own off-road wheelchair. The total cost for the chair and a trailer for transportation is around R300 000, with about an additional R5 000 needed to courier the chair to Cape Town. To date, he has raised over R165 000.

He has also founded Alwyn Uys Ministries, his own registered NPC and PBO.

“Despite the setbacks and hardships I’ve had to face and endure, life is still good and God is still good to me! I realised through this all the importance of doing what you love in this life and the value of appreciation of what you have and the small things in life. Like being able to walk on the beach with your dogs.”

The acquisition of the off-road wheelchair represents more than just enhanced mobility for Alwyn; it symbolises a reclaiming of his independence and a return to the joys of his pre-accident life.

Hendrik van der Merwe's journey of highs and lows finally takes him to the Tokyo 2020 Paralympics

25 August 2021

As he walked about the Olympic Stadium during the Tokyo 2020 Paralympics opening ceremony held under a full moon on Tuesday night, Hendrik van der Merwe would have been forgiven had he stopped, looked about and taken a moment for himself.

It has taken him 17 years of trying for the man they call “Legs” to get to the Paralympics, a journey of highs and lows that has tested him, and forced him into retirement from competitive swimming after he did not make the 2016 Games. He needed to make a living, he said, and he went into coaching. But he wanted one more shot at the sport he had taken up at school in 2004.

Van der Merwe, who was born with spina bifida and cannot use his legs, will take part in the 100m breaststroke heats on Saturday morning, an event in which his long-time rival Tadhg Slattery has two gold medals, two silvers and a bronze from his six Paralympics. Slattery is in Tokyo as a personal coach, having retired after the London Games. He made his debut in Barcelona in 1992, where he won gold.

Slattery retired as a Paralympic athlete a few times, and joked this week that Van der Merwe had asked him to stay on for one more chance to race against him. “We have been rivals for long time, until I retired,” said Slattery. “He was trying to beat me. He asked me to stay for one more race. I said to him, ‘No thank you’.

“Hendrik missed out three times on the Paralympics during past 17 years. On his fourth time he finally qualified for the Games this year. In 2008, I was in, he was out; 2012 me in, him out; 2016 he missed out again but now, in 2020, he is in. I could not be happier for him.”

 For Van der Merwe “it feels like a weight has been lifted off my shoulders”. Van der Merwe, who is a strength and fitness coach, was in 2017 shortlisted in the top 10 for the Men’s Health magazine cover model. “Trying to make the Paralympic team has been a 17-year journey of highs and lows, but both the highs and the lows were essential in developing me into the athlete physically and mentally that I am today.”

 He is one of a small swimming team of just four. Retirements and time have seen some of SA’s biggest stars retire and the code, once regarded as a trove of medals thanks to the likes of Natalie du Toit and Kevin Paul, is looking to Van der Merwe, Christian Sadie, Alani Ferreira and Kat Swanepoel to add to the pile.

 Slattery has hinted that Sadie is the one to watch in the five events he has entered: 50m butterfly, 100m breaststroke, 200m individual medley, 100m backstroke and 50m freestyle. Born with radial dysplasia, which is also called “radial club hand”, the bones in his arms are underdeveloped. He did to want to be a Paralympian when he was younger, he confesses.

 “I always did Para sports from a young age. There’s a different mentality, everyone would get a medal. I didn’t enjoy that because I’m very competitive. You get taught to be disabled in a way. I didn’t see myself as disabled. A lot of people think you need help and you don’t really need help. And that sort of put me off Para sports.”

Ferreira will be the first South African in the water, on Wednesday in the 100m butterfly heats, before she returns on Friday for the 400m freestyle.

 Van der Merwe will have to wait a few more days before he makes his Paralympic debut. On Tuesday, he watched an opening ceremony that celebrated disability and hoped, again, to provide a basis for enhancing the lives and awareness of the differently abled. It is a very different Games in a very different time. Outside the stadium, protesters called for the cancelling of the Paralympics and the New Zealand team did not parade due to Covid-19 worries. There is reason to fear and be uncertain.

 Van der Merwe has gone through fear and uncertainty. He waited 17 years for this. He won’t mind waiting a few more days.

Meet the Coaches – Hendrik ven der Merwe

March 27, 2015

Introduction

As a parent of two sports sons, I know just how important a coach is in the life of a child. They are the experts in their particular sports fields. They guide, teach, advise, and correct our children in their passion for a sport. Many times these coaches fade and blend into the background as the focus goes onto the achievements of an athlete who does well in his or her sports.

But with this new series called “Meet the Coaches” I want to bring our coaches back into the front line. I want to say: coaches you matter, you make a difference and you are sent by God to guide and lead our children in their sports paths. I want to thank and celebrate our coaches for their long, hard hours and passion in teaching and training our children not only in sports skills but also in important life skills.

Today I am talking to Coach Hendrik van der Merwe. A great Olympian, true athlete, and a man who does not shy away from long hours and hard work. One who personally knows the “grind”, with a deep passion and dedication to see his young athletes that he coaches progress to the top.

Read on to find out more about this special coach!

Your nick name is Coach Legs – tell me a little bit about that?

The nickname Legs comes from one of my very first swimming tours. At a SA Schools Champs to Durban I made friends with two girls on the swim team, they gave me the nickname of Legs. Ever since the name just stuck, with family, friends and colleagues. I guess it is because people are comfortable with me, due to the fact that I am always making jokes about my disability. There is no time in life to look down on yourself.

How did you get involved in swim coaching?

Swimming is my life, I was forced to give up my own swimming career, because bills need to be paid and I do not get the time during the day anymore to train like a professional, of course me being me, I do not like doing things half. None the less I love my job as a Coach. I get to be involved in the sport still, the swim team gets to inspire one another, I get to produce quality swimmers, and I absolutely live for that indescribable goose bumps feeling that sport gives one, it is simply amazing. Swimming is a way of life and one will never survive in this sport unless you as an individual is driven by passion.

How long have you been coaching?

I have been coaching now for + – 3years.

What do you think are the top 1 or 2 characteristics of a good coach?

It will be difficult to name only two characteristics although two very important characteristics would be: Sharing a common love with your swimmers, and for you and the team to have the same visions moving forward.

What is your favorite part about coaching?

Showing the swimmers that they are capable of so much more. Creating stronger more confident swimmers. What we apply in the pool can also be applied in our day to day lives.

At this moment – what are you working on with your swim team?

Currently we are just working towards a successful year, although most of it being achieving more goals and improvements in training. After all, if one wants to race passionately, one must train passionately.

If you have to sum it up shortly, what is your number one aim as a coach for now and for the future?

Producing Olympic Athletes, and becoming one of the world’s greatest.

Are your all work and no play with your swim squad?

I am all about hard work, but it is important to play hard as well. Then again content vs context means everything.

If you could change a rule in swimming, what would it be?

Allowing more dolphin kicks on the breaststroke start.

Besides your professional work as a coach – what do you have a passion for?

I have a passion for keeping fit, and I have a strong liking to the pit bull dog breed.

Name the best moment of your coaching career so far?

Every day of coaching will have a minimum of one or two good moments.

Tell me about what you like to do to relax?

After a long week of coaching and working out, I do absolutely nothing and just plain enjoy being lazy.

You are an Olympian who participated in the 2012 London Paralympics Games. When you swam for you country, what did it feel like?

Swimming for my country gave me a good feeling and sense of achievement. It was a very proud moment for me competing in various IPC world championship events.

What word of motivation do you have for young athletes?

Train as perfect as possible, focus on doing the small things right. Always have long term success in mind when working towards a goal. Without passion nothing is attainable.

What is your favourite motivational quote?

”If the only prayer you say in your life is thank you, that would suffice. Perseverance, Gratitude, Blessed life.

Watch him on YouTube – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bz1-KRaHkPg

2024 National Coaches Week Feature

September 19, 2024

Hendrik van der Merwe

Hendrik van der Merwe is a winner.

Yet, you won’t see him as a pompous individual or parading around with a splash of medals and bragging about awards.

Let that sink in.

The 34-year-old, who was born in South Africa, has competed in several International Paralympic Committee World swim championships – even stopping in Montreal in 2013, where his best race was a seventh-place finish. That was in the 100-metres breaststroke SB5.

SB5 is a classification used for categorizing swimmers based on their level of disability.

In his situation, van der Merwe was born with a disorder which may have involved nerve damage, or weakness, resulting in paralysis of his legs.

You may have heard medical professionals refer to that disability as spina bifida - or the incomplete development of the spine.

His background is interesting. Living on a farm, he started to learn to swim at age nine. Four years later, van der Merwe made the decision to enter the competitive side of the sport. There was indelible and authentic proof of his success as an ambitious and competitive swimmer.

At age 15, his first international award happened in Sheffield, England – a bronze medal in the 100-metres breaststroke. Life, though, was a challenge for him - and not just due to his disability.

Starting at age four, and for eight years, van der Merwe attended a boarding school. He didn’t like study time and claims there was “always lots of violence” with students. It really got on his nerves. One way of dealing with that anxiety and stress was to turn to swimming.

For able-bodied swimmers, times are easier. For him, it meant more work, a new level of determination and a gut-wrenching eagerness to excel. Getting better in everything was his mandate. At one time, he maneuvered with the aid of braces. Now, he goes about his day-to-day duties in a wheelchair.

Coming to Canada in September of 2023, amounted to a new way of life. Canadian winter weather is different from the usually pleasant and sunny conditions he was used to in Pretoria - and a country at the southernmost tip of Africa. From one continent to another, some 15,000 kilometres northwest, van der Merwe has adjusted quite well and focussed on what he enjoys the most – coaching.

“The politics in South Africa, the trajectory of the country didn’t look good, there was corruption all over and I was trying to make things work,” he recalled, detailing that he had two swim schools – one for experienced swimmers and the other for newcomers.

“I was building my career and, with accessibility being an issue, I wanted and really needed a change. I looked for opportunities (as a sports coach) and applied to several countries. Canada would become my choice.”

According to the Government of Canada, foreign nationals may become Canadian citizens – but must apply no sooner than three years and have a permanent residence while showing proficiency in the English or French language. His plans, for now, is to do what he enjoys and consider citizenship at another time.

van der Merwe accepted a job, as a senior coach, with the Guelph Marlin Aquatic Club (GMAC). His focus is on swimmers between the ages of 15 and 18. High on his list is an opportunity, when that time comes, to coach a senior level athlete with physical disabilities.

Laura Nicholls, a two-time Olympian in the pool and head coach of the Marlins, interviewed van der Merwe three times before extending the invite to join her staff.

“He’s a great fit and the coach we had been looking for,” said Nicholls, whose club functions out of the University of Guelph and the municipality-operated Victor Davis Pool. “Passionate, knowledgeable in swim lingo, but more so (van der Merwe) wants to be successful as a coach, see the growth and development of swimmers and puts athletes first.”

GMAC has 190 competitive swimmers, 70 in the Master’s program, about 10 with disabilities and provides lessons to 1,000 people on an annual basis.

Let’s take a minute to return to van der Merwe’s swimming days and a personal goal of achieving success as an individual with a disability.

His biggest accomplishment – making it to the Paralympic Games. In the 100-metres breaststroke, at the 2020 event in in Tokyo, van der Merwe placed ninth. It wasn’t what some would call a masterpiece for the 29-year-old. For him, and that’s what counts, finishing in the Top 10 in the world is quite exceptional.

“I had qualified for the Paralympic Games in Beijing, London and Rio, but Tokyo is what I will always remember,” he said. “It took me 17 years to make the Paralympics – and the dream came true.”

Coaching entered his world, thanks to a special relationship with a friend in South Africa.

“I can remember that first time – and I fell in love with (coaching),” said van der Merwe who, for years, has gone by the moniker of “Coach Legs”, given to him by swimmers at a meet in Durban. “I’m told that, in Canada, it’s not politically correct to use that, but I am grateful that others, who gave it to me, thought of it meaning well.”

Talk to him about coaching and be prepared for a lengthy conversation.

“Coaching is my life,” said van der Merwe, one who does not shy away from hard work and long hours. “I don’t know what else I would do now that I’d enjoy. I just love seeing the journey of improvement. I look at human potential as being un-tapped. Success and growth don’t just happen.

“What I find to be very important, and respectful, is being straightforward with swimmers. I’m big on gratitude. If you have it, you’ll always be happy.”

Swim Ontario, Canada’s largest provincial swim organization, shines the spotlight on van der Merwe – and all coaches - during “National Coaches Week”. It’s a celebration of outstanding leadership, guidance and dedication to athletes.

On his right arm, van der Merwe has a tattoo with the words “if the only prayer in life you say is thank you, that would suffice”.

Living a life of integrity, that’s van der Merwe.

https://www.swimontario.com/news/2024-national-coaches-week-featurehendrikvandermerwe/