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24/07/2008 03:13 PM - (SA) Coach off to Olympics 250708
His inclusion in Team SA for the Olympics now brings the total number of Helderberg residents who will be at the Olympics to four. These are Jessica Pengelly (swimming), Eric Rose-Innes (hockey), Tarryn Hoskin (hockey) and Aveenash Pandoo (weightlifting). The last time a SA weightlifter represented SA at the Olympic Games was in 1992 in Barcelona, the year after SA was readmitted to the International Weightlifting Federation (IWF). Aveenash is also the first weightlifting coach from the Helderberg who will represent South Africa at the Olympic Games. Unfortunately, due to the high standards set by the Olympic committee and the IWF only one South African weightlifter qualified for the Olympics - he is Darryn Anthony from Gauteng, who will be competing in the 77 kg weight category. Aveenash said that Darryn had been training with him for a number of years and was a hard working and dedicated athlete and said he was pleased that he was going to the games. "I expect him to do well and give a good account of himself in Beijing. I have seen him perform on the international stage in a number of events and both he and I know what he is capable of achieving. "At the next Olympic Games in 2012 in London we hope to have more weightlifters in the SA team and have already put a high performance programme in place to make this happen to increase the standard of lifting in SA and I believe that a residence programme will be the key to our success," Aveenash said. Aveenash said he wanted to thank both Hubert and Hester Montgomery, who have been involved in weightlifting at the Hottentots Holland Weightlifting Club in the Strand, since 1954 and with WP Weightlifting and SA Weightlifting for many, many years. Hubert said they appointed Aveenash as the first professional coach for the club in 1996 and instructed to coach and start a development programme in the Cape and hold coaching clinics for promising lifters around SA. "He has gone from strength to strength and we wish him well at the games and sure he will be a credit and a great ambassador to both South Africa and the Helderberg," Hubert said. He added that it was a huge prestige for the local Hottentots holland Weightlifting Club, which was also the head quarters of weightlifting SA, to have someone from the club going to the Olympics. "We are very, very proud of him," he said. Hubert said that Aveenash and Hester have also been invited to attend the elections of the Weightlifting federation of Africa in Egypt in October. He added that Aveenash was the coach of the SA Weightlifting team at the African Champs held in the Strand earlier this year and was complemented by a number of people on the improvement of his athletes. "Since Aveenash has been at the club he has produced a number of international medal winners and I'm sure he will produce many more in the future, so his inclusion in Team SA for the Olympics is a just reward," Hester said. Aveenash said he was very proud to be representing SA at the Olympics and said this was the pinnacle of his career.
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