South African swimmer Tatjana Smith wins Olympic gold as she aims to ‘glorify God’s name’

Swimmer Tatjana Smith introduced residence the primary gold medal for her native South Africa on the Paris Olympics on Monday, and it got here in an occasion that’s not even thought of her finest.

The 27-year-old won the women’s 100-meter breaststroke final in model with a late surge to out-touch Tang Qianting of China by 0.26 seconds and Eire’s Mona McSharry by 0.31. Smith now provides a gold to the silver she gained in the identical occasion on the Tokyo Olympics three years in the past.

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“It took a village to get me the place I’m at the moment,” Smith told Super Sport TV after her gold medal, nonetheless carrying the identical cross earrings as she wore through the race. “I do know they’d have been proud even when I didn’t have a medal, but it surely was actually for them. I swam for everybody that’s been there for me and that’s believed with me, and for our nation as properly.”

“I swam for everybody that’s been there for me, that’s believed with me, for our nation as properly.” 🥺

🇿🇦 Tatjana Smith displays on her Olympic Gold 👇#Paris2024 | #CloserToYourChampions pic.twitter.com/httAs7coTY

— SuperSport 🏆 (@SuperSportTV) July 29, 2024

Smith now has three Olympic medals to her title, and two of them are golds. Her earlier gold medal got here in Tokyo within the 200m breaststroke, maybe her higher occasion, when she was identified by her maiden title Schoenmaker. She set the world document (since broken) in that race and have become the first female South African swimmer to win a gold medal in 25 years.

She is aware of she will nonetheless add one other medal to her rising assortment within the 200m in Paris; the final will be contested on Thursday. If she does, she’s going to grow to be South Africa’s most decorated female Olympian.

“The work’s not executed,” she stated as she completed her interview with Tremendous Sport TV. “I nonetheless have the 200 meters.”

Within the week main as much as the Paris Video games, Smith did a preview interview with South African journalist Marc Strydom about her mindset heading into competitors.

“It’s a each day factor that you need to inform your self, that you just’re not swimming for others’ expectations,” she said. “I believe typically my very own expectations are greater than these (of others). It’s actually simply coming again to it, and I believe simply actually for me, simply trusting in God and figuring out that His plan will finally work out. I’ll carry on specializing in Him and His belief, and that I can simply put together in addition to I can. … I’m going to let go and let God.”

Smith is open about her religion in God on social media, each on Instagram — the place she has a gaggle of highlights titled “His Glory” — and X. She writes “All Glory to God” in her Instagram bio and calls herself a “Youngster of God” on X. She additionally writes “Soli Deo Gloria” on X, which interprets to “Glory to God alone” in Latin.

Final September, she captioned an Instagram submit with a message proclaiming God’s faithfulness. She started by quoting the Bible verse Luke 1:45.

“God is trustworthy and that’s the reason I can stand in confidence, with an enormous smile and a trustworthy coronary heart that it doesn’t matter what I face that He’s there with me and we are going to make it by,” she wrote. “… Via for God is counting on Him by the challenges and getting into the victory He has already gained.”

On X, Smith additionally seeks to ship optimistic messages of religion in God.

“Swimming has been a tremendous platform I’ve been blessed with to Glorify God’s title and to strive present/share His love and goodness to the world,” she wrote in a post from August 2022. She then continued the thread: “What I realised and know is that swimming is only the start. We are able to nonetheless glorify Him in all different locations in life, in each season in life by the best way we reside our lives. We don’t want a platform we solely want a relationship with Him.”

what I realised and know is that swimming is only the start. We are able to nonetheless glorify Him in all different locations in life, in each season in life by the best way we reside our lives. We don’t want a platform we solely want a relationship with Him. 🙏🏻 pic.twitter.com/paEReZRcTE

— Tatjana Schoenmaker (@TRSchoenmaker) August 19, 2022

That’s the reason, for me, PURPOSE DRIVES PASSION. I do know, it doesn’t matter what the achievement or end result I’ll nonetheless be completely satisfied, nonetheless love what I do as a result of I do it by God and for God 🙏🏻

— Tatjana Schoenmaker (@TRSchoenmaker) September 8, 2022

All eyes shall be on Smith within the ladies’s 200m breaststroke, maybe her finest alternative but to deliver glory to God’s title by doing what He has geared up her to take action properly.

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