The 2025 National Secondary Schools and LSEN Championships took place in Bloemfontein last week, and the local Free State athletes certainly did the province proud with several outstanding achievements – including a few national school records.
Despite the heavy rain in the city, spirits remained high throughout the event. The challenging conditions didn’t hold the Free State back either, with athletes from the province delivering no less than 12 of the top 50 performances over the three days.
The standout performance – as well as the third-best – came from Hoërskool Sentraal sprinter Jayden Parken, who broke the boys U17 100m hurdles record twice on his way to gold. He ultimately set a new benchmark of 13.01 seconds.
Oranje Meisieskool’s Rumé Burger also had a sensational championship, breaking four national school records. She won gold in the girls U17 100m in 11.43 seconds, and also clinched gold in the 200m with a time of 23.35 seconds. Her next target is the Senior Nationals in Potchefstroom later this month, where a world record could well be in her sight.
In the boys U15 hammer throw, the Free State made a clean sweep, with Dian Bisschoff taking gold with a throw of 57.04m, followed by Marnu Geyser (48.75m) and Wian Bredenkamp (48.12m). Matthew Durow claimed victory in the boys U19 hammer throw with a throw of 65.19m, earning him a spot on the senior Free State team for the ASA National Championships.
In the girls U19 discus, 17-year-old Judy Watson won with a throw of 49.42m, and was also placed fourth in the shot put with a heave of 13.27m. She, too, has been selected for the senior Free State team and may go up against one of South Africa’s top discus athletes, Yolandi Stander, who teaches at Hoërskool Fichardtpark, where Watson is a learner.
In the girls U15 shot put, Karla Kock took gold with a throw of 14.54m, while fellow Free Stater Marli Jacobs earned bronze with 13.88m.
Other notable achievements include Reuben Smit from Grey College, who broke the boys U15 hurdles record with a time of 12.73 seconds, and Jurgen Nortjé, who won the boys U17 800m in a thrilling finish with a time of 1:52.43.
In the girls U15 200m, Isobel Orji of Eunice took gold in 25.24 seconds, narrowly edging out Denike Jordaan from North West in a nail-biting race.
The girls under-17 high jump saw three Free State athletes finish in the top four. Franzelle Barnard and Cara Rautenbach both cleared 1.64m, with Barnard taking gold and Rautenbach silver. Lize Joubert also cleared 1.64m but was just edged out of the medals by Milan Swart from Gauteng on countback.
One of the most inspiring performances came from Ntsoaki Kaiser, representing the Free State LSEN team. She broke two national school records, winning the girls U13 200m sprint in 29.97 seconds, and also setting a record in the high jump with a clearance of 1.27m.
To all the other Free State athletes not individually mentioned – well done and congratulations on your outstanding performances. You’ve made your province and Bloemfontein proud! – MORGAN PIEK
