News 08:00
BULLETIN 11 August 8 am
Good morning. I am……..
In this bulletin:
# A javelin silver medal for South Africa’s Jo-Ané van Dyk at the Olympic Games
# All eyes on Gerda Steyn in today’s marathon in Paris
# And, Mia le Roux makes history as the first hearing-impaired Miss South Africa
# We start with exciting news from the Olympic Games: Javelin specialist Jo-Ané van Dyk surprised South Africa with another silver medal in Paris last night. Ranked 11th in the world before the Games, Van Dyk’s personal best throw of 63.93-metres put her just behind Japanese world champion Haruka Kitaguchi. Czechia’s Nikola Ogrodnikova claimed the bronze medal. President Cyril Ramaphosa joined in the celebrations, telling Van Dyk she had made all South Africans proud. Heading into the last day of the Games, Team South Africa now has six medals – one gold, three silver and two bronze.
Meanwhile, South Africa’s long-distance queen Gerda Steyn is challenging herself in the women’s marathon today. She is joined by fellow South Africans Irvette van Zyl and Olympic debutant Cian Oldknow [pronounced Old-now]. Yesterday’s men’s marathon was won by Ethiopia’s Tamirat Tola, who claimed gold in an Olympic record time of two-hours, six-minutes and 26-seconds. South Africa’s Elroy Gelant finished in eleventh place and Stephen Mokoka was 27th. And in the four-by-400-metres men’s relay, South Africa ended fifth. They took part after Nigeria were disqualified for a lane violation.
# The ANC says it remains steadfast in its commitment to advancing women’s development and ensuring that gender equality is realised across all sectors of society. The ANC’s acting spokesperson, Zuko Godlimpi, says South Africa’s journey over the past 30 years has shown the empowerment of women is not only a matter of justice, but a critical driver of sustainable development, economic transformation and the advancement of human rights:
# Eskom strongly urges customers to avoid illegal connections to prevent public safety hazards and the risk of network over-loading, which can lead to load reduction measures and extended unplanned power outages. Eskom’s spokesperson, Daphne Mokwena, says while the power utility marks almost 140 consecutive days without load-shedding, it remains concerned about illegal electricity connections, theft and vandalism of critical infrastructure:
# And finally: Twenty-eight-year-old Mia le Roux from Oudtshoorn in the Klein Karoo was crowned Miss South Africa in a glittering ceremony in Pretoria last night. Le Roux, who was born in Sasolburg in the Free State, and was diagnosed with profound hearing loss at the age of one. She is a model and marketing manager, and studies BCom Marketing part-time. Nompumelelo Maduna, from Rockville, Soweto, was named first runner-up, while Onalenna Constantin, from Potchefstroom in North West, is the second runner-up.
Stay tuned for more news………….