A champ in the making

Thandolwethu Lubisi (13), in Grade 7 at Panorama Primary School, ended his last year of primary school on a high note before his journey begins at TuksSport High School.

Being accepted to TuksSport which caters for high-performance athletes did not come without hard work throughout the year. Lubisi applied himself in all his sporting codes. In athletics, he represented Panorama in the D12 District athletics where he placed third in high jump.

However, athletics was not the only sport that kept Lubisi on the sports field as he was also captain of the soccer team. He was selected to be part of the West Rand Protea Football Team and was captain of the team at the Bill Steward Football Tournament in Durban over the July school holidays.

It was during the tournament that he was spotted by TuksSport High School in Pretoria and professional football club, AmaZulu. Lubisi participated in an AmaZulu trial where the winner was to ultimately get a scholarship.

“Unfortunately, he did not win the scholarship but the team was nonetheless interested for him to join them. As a family and after careful consideration, we decided that it would be beneficial for him if he attended the TuksSport High School in Pretoria next year,” said Lubisi’s father, Dumisane.

When not on the field, Lubisi excelled in swimming, leading the swimming team and for the second year in a row, won the Swimmer of the Year accolade at school.

“With his abilities in the pool, and with soccer and athletics, it was really a hard choice for him to make going forward,” said his father. “Going to TuksSport means that he can only play football and be developed as a football player. Therefore he had to forego his other interests in swimming and athletics.”

At Panorama Primary School’s awards ceremony on 6 December, Lubisi received five sports-related awards, which included swimmer of the year (boy), as well as athlete of the year (boy), soccer player of the year, all-round sports boy of the year and sports boy of the year.

“Thando has been amazing,” added his father. “He’s a dedicated young man who gives all he’s got to whatever he does at a particular time. Since he started school seven years ago, Thando has been rewarded for his schooling and sporting abilities.

“He is blessed in many ways and he leads by example, which is why he was also a prefect at school. He has made us proud of him and we can only wish for him to succeed.”

Despite excelling in sport, Lubisi has been able to maintain an average of 70 per cent in the classroom.