On 30 July 2024, LeadUP Podcast released an episode showcasing swimmer Tatjana Smith (formerly Schoenmaker), the Olympic gold medallist, on the topic “swimming for hope”. It was filmed at TuksSport High School and hosted by Lennox Wasara, who interviewed Smith on a variety of topics.
The LeadUP Podcast provides university students and the broader community access to prominent alumni and alumni associates who share their own success stories, as well as advice to achieve success. s The podcast aims to ensure that the community has access to South African and African leaders, and it, also, is a proud production of the UP Alumni Relations office, where the head of content is Samantha Castle. The producer of the show is Honour Shoots, and Maroko Communications oversee audio and video production.
In the episode, which was filmed before the Paris Olympics commenced, Wasara framed Smith as not only a top South African female swimmer who won gold and silver medals at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, but also a UP alumna as she completed her BCom Financial Sciences degree in 2020 and was a student at TuksSport High School. Smith stated that winning the Tokyo Olympics was a character building experience, as she went in giving her best and enjoying her first Olympics. However, due to her success, she is now carrying expectations and used the four years leading up to the Paris Olympics to deal with the mental and emotional difficulties of these expectations and her new reality.
When asked what her mindset was going into the 2024 Olympics, Smith stated she wanted to enjoy the experience, give her best and take whatever outcome came her way. She added that “the ultimate goal is not to win the gold medal but to glorify God”. Smith hinted that it could be her last Olympics, which, in hindsight, foreshadowed her announcement that she is retiring. Smith went out with a bang, winning the first gold medal for South Africa at Paris 2024 when she competed in the Women’s 100m breaststroke and also won silver in the Women’s 200m breaststroke.
Her advice to others who wish for success is to identify the “why” or what it is that drives you, which will motivate you to stick to your plans and not compare yourself to others. To listen to the podcast, you can visit www.up.ac.za/alumi/podcasts, or you can listen and subscribe on YouTube or on your favourite podcast app on your mobile device. New episodes will be released on the last Tuesday of September and November.
