NATIONAL NEWS - Two-time Olympic sailor Asenathi Jim will be sharing some of the knowledge he’s gained over many years of international competition. That’s after he was appointed as one of the training coaches to the junior team that will be representing South Africa at the Youth World Sailing Championships in the USA in July.

Joining Jim as team leader and coach will be fellow Rio Olympic sailor Stefano Marcia, who will also travel with the team, thanks to the backing of Frontier Foundation.

The SA side is made up of two sailors – Cullen Keytel and Sarah-Jane Deary, who will be competing in the Laser Radial class.

Both Olympians are relishing the opportunity to give back to the sport they’ve been a part of for such a long time.

“It’s a very special place to be in because I have had great mentors myself so to be in this position means a lot to me,” said 26-year-old Jim, who originally hails from the rural Eastern Cape.

“I want to almost say it’s our duty to give back to the sport because youngsters always look up to people who have achieved well, so for them to learn they need a pathway and to be guided,” he added.

Asenathi Jim and Roger Hudson are both from Cape Town.

Also excited to be sharing his skills is Marcia, who competed at his first Olympics in Rio two years ago. 

“It's a very different challenge, but it's enjoyable as these are young sailors who aspire to be top athletes in the sport,” he explained. 

“I can see the respect each sailor has for me when I talk to them – they listen and are keen to learn and improve as sailors. Both myself and the sailors will begin to see steps of improvement over the next few weeks of training and that's exciting as a coach.”

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