We chose March 2010’s Woman of the Month because she set a new personal best record at Javelin late last year, and she’s already off to a great start to the 2010 season, with the IAAF recording her getting off to a decent start in Potchefstroom three weekends ago. And yes, she’s 26 years old, and has more than 10 years’ international experience in track & field, and she just keeps on getting better!

She’s got a rack of gold medals to show off, if she was that way inclined, including at the 2006 Commonwealth Games in Melbourne at her best-ever at the Universiade in Belgrade last year, where she set a new African record of 65.46 meters, three metres better than her previous best set in 2008.

Oh, and she’s also played test cricket for South Africa, and turned out in the green and gold for SA in 17 ODI’s, between 2000 and 2002. She says it was a difficult decision to leave cricket for a fully-focussed athletics sporting career, but one which has seen her make a marked improvement in personal strides.

But this phys-ed teacher from Rustenburg with strong family roots in sports and education, and multiple degrees to her name, is a real home-body, and approaches her dedication to competitive sport with quiet preparation and respect for her opponents. gsport is proud to introduce its March 2010 Woman of the Month: Sunette Viljoen!

Hi Sunette, great to talk to you! Where were you born, and where do you live now?

I was born in Johannesburg, and at the moment I live in Rustenburg.

What makes you a proud South African?

I have fond memories of growing up in the countryside. I come from a family of teachers, so there was always good discipline in our house, but during my childhood, I always played outside with my brother.

I think, if you ask every South African athlete, when we go overseas and get back home, just to be back home, to see friends and family, that’s what makes us proudly South African. We have some cultures that other countries don’t have, we have braaivleis – which other countries don’t have – and we have biltong, so, all the little things that makes South Africa different from all the other countries.

With the amount of qualifications to your name, it seems you’re perpetually and simultaneously a student and teacher: - How do you balance these two competing interests?

Ja, all of the people always ask me about balance, and how do I get time to do all the things I do, my aim is always that I’m a very busy person – you can ask anyone – so, I think I can do a lot of stuff, and I enjoy being busy. I’m a very active person, and so basically, this year I’m busy with my studies, I’m a teacher as well, but ok, it’s not that difficult, hey? I try to spend my time wisely, and to do all the thing that I can do. As they say, the busier you are, the more you can get done!

Then you are also an ace athlete, with national colours in javelin and cricket: - How do you handle such a busy life-style?

Ag, it is nice, and I enjoy it, it keeps me fit and it keeps me busy, and a healthy sporting life – I always train hard and I always do my best in everything I do, to be busy and to represent South Africa is just a great honour, its something I really wanted to do since I was a little one. So, to compete at this stage of my life, I’m very proud of what I’ve achieved, and what I’ve still to achieve in my life, so, I think my big distances and everything is still to come.

What does your average training day consist of?

There’s different types of competencies you have to have to be a good javelin thrower, and there’s different types of exercises that you do, you have to be powerful, you have to have speed, you have to have flexibility, you have to be explosive. So there’s a lot of different types of exercises you do, to train every single muscle.

Basically, my training day consists of training two hours in the morning (from 8am till 10am) and two hours in the evening (from 5pm to 7pm). Some days I go to the gym, I also swim, sometimes I do physical strength training, sometimes a little bit of technique, and there’s different types of training you can do. There’s medicine balls, all those old-kind of stuff, so it’s all different kinds of exercises.

We’ve read you quoted as saying that you’re one of the smallest of the top javelin throwers internationally, but that it doesn’t bother you – can you explain?

(Laughs!) If you look at the international competitions, there is an assumption that javelin throwers have to be big and strong, and overall I’m very small, if I had to look at my competitors. I’m very fast, and I have a very fast arm, so I think that my strength and power comes from that, so, overseas they’re a little bit taller than I am, but I’m fast, so, dynamite comes in small packages (laughs!). I’m not afraid if they’re a little bigger than me!

How did you come to love athletics, and how did you get to javelin?

Basically, when I was at high school, because I was a cricketer from a very small age - I always played cricket with my brother – I was used to throwing cricket balls all the time, when I got to high school, the teacher said I must come and try javelin throw. In Grade 8, I tried javelin throw, but it didn’t work out. I started again in Grade 10, and I threw 32 (metres) I think, something like that, and then I got a bursary from the North-West University because I’m a very talented sporty-type of person – I could have excelled at all different types of sport if I had to make a choice, but at the end of the day I chose athletics, because I think that it is the best in which I can perform to my abilities, in athletics.

What would you regard as a notable career achievement?

We have the Commonwealth Games this year, end of October, my aim is to defend my title, and secondly next year we have the World Championships in Korea, and the big one is the 2012 London Olympics. It is a dream for every athlete to go to the Olympic Games, and that’s quite a notable achievement, and that will be my third Olympics, and that is one of my biggest career achievements so far.

What other sporting codes had your interest?

(Laughs!) Oh, all different types of sporting codes. I play tennis, cricket, did a little bit of cross-country at school, I’ve got a lot of ball-sense, I play golf, a little bit of hockey, ag, I can do everything that I want to do, but at the end of the day, you can’t do all things that you want to do, so you must focus on one thing. But it’s nice for me, sometimes when I’m not busy with athletics, to do different kinds of things, which is nice to take my mind off athletics.

You set a remarkably improved personal best exceeding 65 metres in Beograd in July last year, what assisted you to that optimum performance?

The big thing that stands out is training, training, training. It takes a lot of hard work, a lot of self-discipline, a lot of enthusiasm; you have to stick to your training programme. Because athletics is an individual-based sport, you have to do it all on your own. There’s no team to assist you … I always wanted to throw 65 metres, so to do it last year was very special because I had a very long and hard season building towards that, and I trained really hard for July, and to improve by so many metres, it was nice. I think I’m at a good stage of my life now, and I can perform to the best that I can. To throw 65 metres, it’s special!

Do you think you can improve on it?

Ja, definitely (laughs)! I’m that kind of person, if I train; I train 120% every day. If I fix my mind on something, I go all-out for it. My aim for this year is to throw 65 again, and maybe if it’s meant for me to break the record again, only time will tell … We will see how this season unfolds – we’ve got a very long season, it only ends in October, I’ll have to train well and keep my body fit, till October.

We know of your love for cricket, what was your most memorable achievement on the oval?

I was selected for South Africa when I was fifteen or sixteen to play in the series against England, and I played in the World Cup in 2000 in New Zealand when I was in grade 11, when I was seventeen, and then I played for South Africa until I was first-year at University, but unfortunately then I had to make a choice between athletics and cricket, and athletics won (laughs)!

If you had your sporting career all over again, what would you do differently?

… Nothing (laughs)!

Who would you like to acknowledge for having had faith in you, and having supported your career choices?

I would say, the most important ones that stand out is always your family, my mom and my dad, they never pressurized me to do one kind of sport, I always did what I loved, from a small age I did everything that I could, so, at the end of the day, I think they made the right decision, they gave me the choice. Ja, my family has been there for me, my brother, my sister, and I think the most important ones are always your mom and your dad.

What advice would you have for an aspirant athlete who has a love for teaching, and holds you up as a role-model?

If you want to become a teacher, the first thing you must have is a passion for teaching, you must want to work with the kids, and I think the big thing is to make a difference in the kid’s life. This is very important, because the kids look up to you. You must always handle them with respect, talk to them in a nice manner.

What makes you passionate about sport?

I’m crazy about sport, and I love to be busy with sport, and sport keeps you healthy and fit. Because I come out of a very sporty house, I think sport is very important in your life. I just love sport, I just love to run, cycle, to be busy – it doesn’t matter what kind of sport it is!

What is your favourite spectator sport?

I like to watch rugby, cricket … No, I’m not a Blue Bulls fan, not at all (laughs). Most of my friends are Blue Bulls supporters, but my friend and I are Stormers fans – Stormers rock! I like the type of rugby the Stormers play.

Who are your favourite sports stars?

There is not one that I can single out; there are all sorts of people that I enjoy watching. As an international athlete, you look up to each other, and as a South African, I like the Springbok rugby team, but there’s no-one overseas that I really admire.

What about Justine Robbeson?

Oh, Justine! We come a long way; she started to compete with me in 2007. She was a heptathlon athlete, and decided to become a javelin thrower, but we are very good competition for each other. We just like to throw against each other, and we always get the best out of each other. And it’s nice to have a top javelin thrower here in South Africa that throws the same distances!

gsport takes relish in celebrating femininity. What does femininity mean to you, and what place does it take in your life?

It is very important to represent your women’s side. It is nice to be the kind of person that I am. I’m just a very plain Jane, as they would say, its just important to make the best out of what you are, and to enjoy life.

What is your biggest wish for 2010?

My biggest wish is to finish in the top five in the world again, and then to win the Commonwealth Games!

What inspires you?

You have to have a little fire inside you to train when it’s raining, or when the other people aren’t training, for me that’s just trying to be the best that I can be, so I just keep on focusing on what I have to do.

Your message to South Africa?

I want to make them proud by what I do, and just to stay the humble person that I am, and not to let any achievement to go to my head.  Am very privileged to have what I have, and, ja, that’s basically it (laughs)!

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Sonja (Sons)  - You're the best   |2010-03-17 17:13:56 I've got the priveleged to play with Sunette Action Cricket in Rustenburg. She is indeed also a very humble person. Nothings goes to her head. When she is in Cape Town she always visit us to say hi. She is really enjoying life at the fullest. Reply 0   0

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