Teen sensation Scarlett Le Roux clinches silver and bronze in SA's six-medal haul at Belarus Cup

Team South Africa clinched a total of six medals at the highly competitive Belarus Swimming Cup, with rising star Scarlett Le Roux personally contributing two podium finishes to the tally.

The prestigious event, held at the 25m Belarus Aquatics Centre in Minsk from 20 to 23 November, attracted elite swimmers from across the globe.

Seventeen-year-old Le Roux concluded the meet with two medals, both achieved while setting new personal best times: Bronze: 400m Freestyle (Time: 4:18.33) and Silver: 800m Freestyle (Career-best time: 8:54.3).

She also narrowly missed the podium in the 200m freestyle but still recorded another personal best time.

READ: Caldwell and Le Roux secure double bronze for SA at Belarus Swimming Cup

Le Roux expressed her delight following the performance: "I am honestly over the moon. The results took me by surprise because my training block wasn’t lined up for big drops in time, and the level of talent there was incredible. I’m extremely proud of what I achieved and grateful for the experience."

Development Goals and Future Focus

Le Roux plans to focus on technical refinement to advance her performance:

"I’d really like to improve my stroke technique, especially when I get tired, because it tends to fall apart a bit.

"I also want to sharpen my overall feel for the water and strengthen the connection between my body and my stroke.”

She also emphasised the importance of creating better support and opportunities to strengthen women's swimming in South Africa.

"Strengthening women’s swimming starts with keeping girls in the sport. South Africa has incredibly talented swimmers, and our swimming scene is growing... I do think we can learn a lot from overseas swimming structures and systems, but we already have a strong base; there’s just always room to grow."

Le Roux comes from a family deeply involved in the sport, stating: "We literally eat, sleep, and breathe swimming as a family."

Her recent accomplishments highlight her consistent rise in the sport:

Earlier in the year (Cairo): She secured four gold medals (800m, 400m, 200m freestyle, and 4x200m relay) and one silver (1,500m freestyle) at the 16th African Junior Swimming Championships.

December (Namibia): She captained Team SA at the 20th Africa Aquatics Zone IV Swimming and Open Water Championships, leading the team to a championship-winning 84 medals. She personally won 11 golds and 1 silver, and broke four records (50m, 100m, 200m backstroke, and 100m freestyle).

SA National Swimming Champs (Gqeberha, April): She was 7th overall in the 400m freestyle and 10th in the 200m freestyle and 200m individual medley in the open races.

Le Roux reflected on the mental aspect of competition: "The biggest lesson is that pressure is a privilege... So many people wish they could do what we do. I look up to swimmers, and I know others look up to us as well, and that’s something I try to appreciate."