SA falls short in Delhi
Oct 15, 2010 12:28 AM | By KAMAL RAM
The South African team left Delhi last night with their lowest medal haul at a Commonwealth Games since 1994, although they achieved their target of finishing fifth on the medal table, beating Kenya by a single bronze medal.
Athletics and shooting were the biggest losers, shedding 14 medals from the Melbourne showpiece in 2006. The shooters bagged five medals four years ago, but failed to make the podium once this time around.
Track and field has been the core of past South African teams at Commonwealth competition. In Australia it provided 14 medals (five gold) in track and field, but in India there were just five medals, two of them gold.
The athletics team was hit hard by injuries to 800m world champions Caster Semenya and Mbulaeni Mulaudzi, as well as the absence of Olympic long jump silver medallist Khotso Mokoena.
In all, South Africa won 33 medals in Delhi, with 12 gold, 11 silver and 10 bronze. Four years ago they took 38 medals (12 gold, 13 silver and 13 bronze), also ending fifth.
In 2002 they claimed a whopping 46 medals (9g, 20s, and 17b), but ended sixth. In 1998 they were fifth with 34 medals (9g, 11s, 14b).
They won 11 medals (2g, 4s, 5b) in 1994, their first Commonwealth Games since sporting isolation.
The swimmers improved on their Melbourne performance in India. They pushed their 12-medal haul (5g, 2s, 5b) to 16 (7g, 4s, 5b), thanks in part to schoolboy sensation Chad le Clos, who won four medals overall (2g, 1s, 1b) to match Roland Schoeman as the country’s most prolific medal-winner from a single Games.
Schoeman set the bar with three golds and a bronze in 2006, and in Delhi he visited the podium three times for a silver and two bronze.
The country’s wrestlers (five medals), archers (two) and sevens rugby team (one) enjoyed success after failure in Melbourne.
But boxing, cycling and weightlifting, medal-winners four years ago, were unable to gain any reward in India.
The Games, marked by oppressive security and low spectator turnout, came to a close last night