All-star shot put athlete: Tuane Silver

A record-breaking Tuane
Precious Nghituanapo
Precious Nghituanapo



“I still dream of being the best, but the key difference is that now I am working to be the best; it’s not just a dream anymore. It’s my future.”



Tuane Silver, an 18-year-old grade 12 learner at Curro Windhoek Gymnasium Private School, born in Boksburg, South Africa, is Namibia’s senior national shot put record-breaker.



Silver’s love for shot put started at Barberton Primary School, South Africa. She moved to Namibia at the age of 10 and lived in Tsumeb before moving to Windhoek in 2018.



“From the first moment I stepped into the circle, I fell in love with it,” Silver explains.



Her official journey as an athlete commenced in 2014 when she competed in the South African School Championships, an event that made her dedicate her energy to reaching great heights in this career.



“The second I stepped off that track, I told my parents that I would be the best one day, and since that day I have worked and trained to become the best I could possibly be.”



Her promising shot put career has presented Silver with major achievements, including becoming the title holder of the national junior champion for seven consecutive years since 2016.



A rollercoaster ride would be a good analogy to use when describing her sports career. According to Silver, everything goes according to plan on one day, when she feels awake and fantastic, trains and performs well.



The next day, however, she feels as though she has never done any of it before.



Nevertheless, persistency and determination thrive within her, contributing to her current success as the senior national champion title holder for the fifth time running.



She continues to be a force to be reckoned with as she currently holds the distinction of having broken every junior shot put record from ages u12 up to u18, in addition to breaking the senior national record four times this year and six times overall.



Accomplishments:



• Senior national record holder



• 5th place finish at u20 World Championships



• Ranked 11th u20 in the world



• Senior national champion



• Junior national champion



• Junior national record holder



• 6th place finish at the Confederation of African Athletics (CAA) Senior African ChampionshipsSilver is currently working towards her 2023 goal of throwing a distance of 17.5m as well as to qualify for the u20 African Championships, and, importantly, the 2024 Olympics.



However, achieving goals requires a dedicated training routine, which includes a 1h30min strength and conditioning session accompanied by time on the track and throwing sessions.



“What I do during my sessions depends on the day of the week, as well as how I feel that day. Then I do my drills and some speed work,” she says.



Like most athletes, Silver has suffered injuries during her career, but has managed to turn these challenges into lessons.



She suffered an anterior cruciate ligament injury (ACL), which resulted in a halt in her training and performance sessions. Silver quickly learned that her life cannot only revolve around shot put and that small injuries have to be treated effectively.



The importance of discipline and listening to your body has become very important to her.



“Greatness takes time, and I feel I have grown a tremendous amount as a person. But the personal growth I have experienced around handling my injuries is what I am most proud of.”



Challenges:



• I tore my hamstring last year, which made training more difficult for a couple of months.



• I had an ACL reconstruction just before pre-season 2019.



• Another challenge I faced was not being able to compete in the senior group in 2020 because I had not turned 16 yet.



• Putting in the work and training takes time, while still being in school and trying to get the best results possible for university applications.



Apart from the challenges, she is grateful for her achievements, and for being rewarded for her hard work.



“I am extremely blessed with a talent and an opportunity, which gives me a shot at being at the top,” she says.



“I have had an amazing athletics career thus far, even though everything does not always go according to plan. I’m excited to see what the future holds.”



10 facts about yourself:



• I love reading psychological books.



• I am an excellent cook.



• I have a passion for cars.



• One of my hobbies is playing guitar.



• My favourite snack is popcorn.



• I hate jogging.



• I am an extremely self-disciplined person.



• I hate tomatoes.



• I am a practical person.



• I have a coffee addiction.



Her words of advice for other athletes:



“Stick with the dream and never give it up. Even when it gets rough and it looks like it is not achievable, just keep going. When I’m in a tough spot, I think of something ‘Dory’ once said: Just keep swimming. If you can convince yourself to just keep going, you’ll make it, because you are your greatest adversary.”



She has broken the senior national record four times this year and six times in total.

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Namibian Sun 2024-03-28

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Katima Mulilo: 19° | 37° Rundu: 17° | 33° Eenhana: 18° | 33° Oshakati: 20° | 31° Ruacana: 19° | 33° Tsumeb: 17° | 29° Otjiwarongo: 16° | 28° Omaruru: 18° | 31° Windhoek: 17° | 28° Gobabis: 17° | 28° Henties Bay: 16° | 19° Wind speed: 24km/h, Wind direction: S, Low tide: 10:54, High tide: 04:57, Low Tide: 22:58, High tide: 17:16 Swakopmund: 15° | 17° Wind speed: 29km/h, Wind direction: SW, Low tide: 10:52, High tide: 04:55, Low Tide: 22:56, High tide: 17:14 Walvis Bay: 16° | 22° Wind speed: 33km/h, Wind direction: SW, Low tide: 10:52, High tide: 04:54, Low Tide: 22:56, High tide: 17:13 Rehoboth: 18° | 29° Mariental: 22° | 32° Keetmanshoop: 21° | 34° Aranos: 21° | 31° Lüderitz: 15° | 29° Ariamsvlei: 23° | 34° Oranjemund: 15° | 21° Luanda: 27° | 30° Gaborone: 20° | 32° Lubumbashi: 17° | 24° Mbabane: 15° | 23° Maseru: 12° | 28° Antananarivo: 16° | 27° Lilongwe: 17° | 29° Maputo: 20° | 28° Windhoek: 17° | 28° Cape Town: 17° | 23° Durban: 21° | 25° Johannesburg: 18° | 28° Dar es Salaam: 26° | 32° Lusaka: 18° | 30° Harare: 15° | 31° Currency: GBP to NAD 23.87 | EUR to NAD 20.43 | CNY to NAD 2.62 | USD to NAD 18.92 | DZD to NAD 0.14 | AOA to NAD 0.02 | BWP to NAD 1.33 | EGP to NAD 0.39 | KES to NAD 0.14 | NGN to NAD 0.01 | ZMW to NAD 0.74 | ZWL to NAD 0.04 | BRL to NAD 3.8 | RUB to NAD 0.2 | INR to NAD 0.23 | USD to DZD 134.27 | USD to AOA 832.63 | USD to BWP 13.71 | USD to EGP 47.35 | USD to KES 130.98 | USD to NGN 1415.13 | USD to ZAR 18.93 | USD to ZMW 25.01 | USD to ZWL 321 | Stock Exchange: JSE All Share Index 73909.5 Up +0.41% | Namibian Stock Exchange (NSX) Overall Index 1516.02 Down -0.13% | Casablanca Stock Exchange (CSE) MASI 12981.98 Up +0.34% | Egyptian Exchange (EGX) 30 Index 28224.37 Down -2.87% | Botswana Stock Exchange (BSE) DCI Same 0 | NSX: MTC 7.75 SAME | Anirep 8.99 SAME | Capricorn Investment group 17.34 SAME | FirstRand Namibia Ltd 49 DOWN 0.50% | Letshego Holdings (Namibia) Ltd 4.1 UP 2.50% | Namibia Asset Management Ltd 0.7 SAME | Namibia Breweries Ltd 31.49 UP 0.03% | Nictus Holdings - Nam 2.22 SAME | Oryx Properties Ltd 12.1 UP 1.70% | Paratus Namibia Holdings 11.99 SAME | SBN Holdings 8.45 SAME | Trustco Group Holdings Ltd 0.48 SAME | B2Gold Corporation 47.34 DOWN 1.50% | Local Index closed 677.62 UP 0.12% | Overall Index closed 1534.6 DOWN 0.05% | Osino Resources Corp 19.47 DOWN 2.41% | Commodities: Gold US$ 2 225.05/OZ UP +1.57% | Copper US$ 3.99/lb UP +0.09% | Zinc US$ 2 453.40/T DOWN -0.13% | Brent Crude Oil US$ 87.37/BBP UP +1.14% | Platinum US$ 908.10/OZ UP +1.48% Sport results: Weather: Katima Mulilo: 19° | 37° Rundu: 17° | 33° Eenhana: 18° | 33° Oshakati: 20° | 31° Ruacana: 19° | 33° Tsumeb: 17° | 29° Otjiwarongo: 16° | 28° Omaruru: 18° | 31° Windhoek: 17° | 28° Gobabis: 17° | 28° Henties Bay: 16° | 19° Wind speed: 24km/h, Wind direction: S, Low tide: 10:54, High tide: 04:57, Low Tide: 22:58, High tide: 17:16 Swakopmund: 15° | 17° Wind speed: 29km/h, Wind direction: SW, Low tide: 10:52, High tide: 04:55, Low Tide: 22:56, High tide: 17:14 Walvis Bay: 16° | 22° Wind speed: 33km/h, Wind direction: SW, Low tide: 10:52, High tide: 04:54, Low Tide: 22:56, High tide: 17:13 Rehoboth: 18° | 29° Mariental: 22° | 32° Keetmanshoop: 21° | 34° Aranos: 21° | 31° Lüderitz: 15° | 29° Ariamsvlei: 23° | 34° Oranjemund: 15° | 21° Luanda: 27° | 30° Gaborone: 20° | 32° Lubumbashi: 17° | 24° Mbabane: 15° | 23° Maseru: 12° | 28° Antananarivo: 16° | 27° Lilongwe: 17° | 29° Maputo: 20° | 28° Windhoek: 17° | 28° Cape Town: 17° | 23° Durban: 21° | 25° Johannesburg: 18° | 28° Dar es Salaam: 26° | 32° Lusaka: 18° | 30° Harare: 15° | 31° Economic Indicators: Currency: GBP to NAD 23.87 | EUR to NAD 20.43 | CNY to NAD 2.62 | USD to NAD 18.92 | DZD to NAD 0.14 | AOA to NAD 0.02 | BWP to NAD 1.33 | EGP to NAD 0.39 | KES to NAD 0.14 | NGN to NAD 0.01 | ZMW to NAD 0.74 | ZWL to NAD 0.04 | BRL to NAD 3.8 | RUB to NAD 0.2 | INR to NAD 0.23 | USD to DZD 134.27 | USD to AOA 832.63 | USD to BWP 13.71 | USD to EGP 47.35 | USD to KES 130.98 | USD to NGN 1415.13 | USD to ZAR 18.93 | USD to ZMW 25.01 | USD to ZWL 321 | Stock Exchange: JSE All Share Index 73909.5 Up +0.41% | Namibian Stock Exchange (NSX) Overall Index 1516.02 Down -0.13% | Casablanca Stock Exchange (CSE) MASI 12981.98 Up +0.34% | Egyptian Exchange (EGX) 30 Index 28224.37 Down -2.87% | Botswana Stock Exchange (BSE) DCI Same 0 | NSX: MTC 7.75 SAME | Anirep 8.99 SAME | Capricorn Investment group 17.34 SAME | FirstRand Namibia Ltd 49 DOWN 0.50% | Letshego Holdings (Namibia) Ltd 4.1 UP 2.50% | Namibia Asset Management Ltd 0.7 SAME | Namibia Breweries Ltd 31.49 UP 0.03% | Nictus Holdings - Nam 2.22 SAME | Oryx Properties Ltd 12.1 UP 1.70% | Paratus Namibia Holdings 11.99 SAME | SBN Holdings 8.45 SAME | Trustco Group Holdings Ltd 0.48 SAME | B2Gold Corporation 47.34 DOWN 1.50% | Local Index closed 677.62 UP 0.12% | Overall Index closed 1534.6 DOWN 0.05% | Osino Resources Corp 19.47 DOWN 2.41% | Commodities: Gold US$ 2 225.05/OZ UP +1.57% | Copper US$ 3.99/lb UP +0.09% | Zinc US$ 2 453.40/T DOWN -0.13% | Brent Crude Oil US$ 87.37/BBP UP +1.14% | Platinum US$ 908.10/OZ UP +1.48%