Johannesburg - Wearing dark sunglasses and wrapped in the South African flag with his silver medal shining around his neck, Luvo Manyonga walked out of the OR Tambo International Airport Arrivals Terminal to shouts of delight and clapping.
“My Olympic dream has come true. I’m so grateful and so overwhelmed. It’s the greatest thing that’s ever happened to me,” Manyonga said.
Excited family, friends and fans waited to welcome home South Africa’s long jump silver medallist from the Rio Olympics. Holding balloons, South African flags and signs, the crowd waited patiently for his arrival. Among them was Manyonga’s older sister, Nosipho.
Nosipho said everyone back home was “very excited” by the achievement. “We’ve all been celebrating and we’re having a thanksgiving ceremony on the weekend. He’s such a sweet boy, he’s my little brother and we’re so proud of him,” she added.
Cornel Fredericks, a close friend, said he was incredibly proud and overwhelmed by Manyonga’s achievement.
He said that it was Mario Smit, Manyonga’s long-time coach, who was the man who “put Luvo on the map”.
Smit died in a car accident in 2014, following Manyonga’s comeback after his tik addiction earned him a two-year ban from competing in 2012.
Manyonga beamed with excitement as he was swarmed by adoring fans. Asked what his future held, the silver medallist joked: “The future is bright, that’s why I’m wearing sunglasses!”
He said he hoped to compete in the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo and come back wearing gold. He said he was grateful that people still believed in him after everything he’d been through.
“I’m telling South Africa not to look at me in the same way as I was - I am new. I’m not that person any more, I’m just Luvo,” he said.
Manyonga took time to pose for the cameras. He had a strong message for South Africans: “I encourage all South Africans, whoever they are, to always believe in themselves.”
@Lanc_02
The Star