Pretoria - As far as can be established, Thomas and Donné Breytenbach, from Pretoria, will make history when they become the first twins to represent South Africa at the Commonwealth Games.
They said yesterday there was no added pressure for them to do well at the games. The 2022 Commonwealth Games begin on July 28 and end on August 8.
The twins are both judokas, Tuks-Sport High School matriculants and TuksJudo Academy graduates.
Donné said it was exciting to be the first set of twins to represent the country at the games.
“To an extent there is some sort of pressure. We are still juniors competing against seniors who have a lot more experience than us.
“The aim is just to go there and see how we are doing against those people. Doing our best is what we are aiming for.”
Donné said: “I feel like the both of us are well prepared for the games and we are both excited for it.
The preparations are going according to plan and on par with what we want.”
Donné said she was training with the University of Pretoria and hoped to study education next year, while Thomas was studying for a Bachelor of Arts in Humanities.
Thomas said they started participating in the sport when they were just 4 years old.
“We were busy bodies; so we started participating in judo and competing locally. Eventually, we went national. When we were 14, we started competing internationally.”
Thomas said they were hyperactive youngsters who saw judo as a fun sport, after which they went on to train.
Thomas said that to excel in the sport, one needed to be good with both left and right grips. “I find that the most difficult part of judo, and to learn and get good at.”
Despite being twins, the pair said they had different highlights and achievements in their careers.
“My biggest achievement was as a junior coming second at seniors Africa’s, and when I was in U18 I was ranked number one in the world in my category and won medals on continental and internationally,” Thomas said.
“My greatest achievement was coming in second at Africa’s junior, and last year I went to Dakar and Senegal and placed first at both tournaments and came first in the senior tournament this year,” Donné said.
In a TuksSport article, their proud mom, Theresa Breytenbach, said the first time she sensed the twins were serious about succeeding was when they went to high school.
“It was tough on them. They had to endure long, hard hours of training, and being slack in their studies was never an option.
“Thomas and Donné never once complained. Right from the start, they knew that success and dedication go hand in hand,” she said.
The twins will be among the 190 athletes that form part of Team South Africa.
Pretoria News