My name is Natascha Bracale, I’m 26 years old, born and raised in the beautiful city of Cape Town! I live in Marina da Gama to be as close to my training as possible. My hobbies include reading, martial arts, hiking, writing poetry and spending time with all those dear to me.

Sport is an integral part of my life, starting with gymnastics at age four. The rush of competing, meeting new people and the obvious health benefits have always been my motivation.

I was approached in January 2009 by Ian Trautmann, Captain of Peninsula Canoe Club to start paddling ie. canoeing and surf-skiing. I started immediately and it has become my goal to make it into the Olympics in 2012 and 2016 for the 200m and 500m sprint event.

I’ve had a few highlights through my sporting years. I won a gold medal at the World Powerlifting Congress World Championships in 2001 in the Women’s 60kg division, and broke two SA records in the process.

I was awarded my Springbok colours for the Kimura Shukokai Karate style in 2000, and was honoured to go to three World Championships, Berlin, Germany in 2000, Birmingham, England in 2002 (where I placed fourth for the Womens Openweight Fighting division), and Zurich, Switzerland in 2008 (where I won a gold medal in the Womens Unison Kata and a bronze in the Womens Individual Kata division, which placed me at No.1 in SA).

The choice to start paddling was a bitter-sweet one, as I have had to cut back on my karate, which I have been doing passionately for 12 years and which runs in my family! My father and uncle were both knock-down karate champions, and my uncle held the world wood-breaking record for about 15 years, for 28 pieces of wood!

The great part is I am training to have a chance to get into the South African team for the greatest sporting event in the world, the Olympic Games. Definitely a hard road to travel, but an awesome challenge I have embraced.

I love all sports, mostly rugby, gymnastics and horse-riding, but I will always be the first to volunteer for a game of whatever’s going!

I think women doing sport is of the utmost importance. It has become common these days to see women in previously male-dominated sports, such as rugby, motor racing, soccer, sailing and martial arts. Even paddling is a growing attraction for women.

It is extremely important that women endeavour to do any sport they feel they want to, no matter what society tells them. Women CAN do any sport that men can do, and excel at it. Just believe in yourself and train until you pass out, or throw up. It takes its toll on the body and mind, but its ALWAYS possible. Don’t let anybody steal your dreams.

I was lucky enough to secure a sponsor so early on in my journey, Kate from CorporateWise in Cape Town is a friend and a beautiful human being. Thank you for your constant support!

Sponsorship is not easy to come by these days, but I am on the look out for more sponsors to join me on what promises to be an incredible time in my life, and one thing I can definitely promise, is that I will train until I can’t train anymore, then train some more, deliver the results and have fun doing it.

REFUSE TO BE AVERAGE.

Follow Natascha Bracale’s Olympic passion at her website, Refuse2BAverage

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