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Catching up motivated and brilliant young swimmer Georgia Nel. Although she is fairly new in the swimming arena, she is doing extremely well and is resolved to give it her all. She says “I am a young lady who will give 101% at whatever I do. I hope to be someone who inspires many and makes a difference in this world, small or big”.
About success in life she says “A successful person is not always someone who achieves something that the whole world knows about, a successful person is a person who achieves THEIR extraordinary in life. If a snail takes the whole day to cross a garden, it has still done something extraordinary by its own standard. I define success not by if you’re wealthy or pre-eminent but by the amount of joy you produce in accomplishing YOUR aim or purpose”.
Athlete: Bio / Stats |
|
| Name & Surname | Georgia Nel |
| Nick Name | George/ Porge/ Captain Muffin |
| Date of birth | 23 July 2002 |
| Place of birth | Constantiaburg Hospital, Cape Town |
| Current City | Cape Town |
| Height | 183cm/ 6.03ft |
| Weight | 68kg |
| Shoe Size | 10/ 11 |
| Club | Swimlab Aquatic Academy Wynberg (SAAW) |
| Coach’s Name | Hilton Slack |
| Out of Country events/ meets | Cana zone ||| swimming championships in Kigali, Rwanda |
| Secondary Sport/ sports | Gym (Occasionally love to play tennis) |
| Favorite City | Paris (Never Been) |
| Favorite Song/ type of music | EVERYTHING! I love music! |
| Favorite Movie | Aristocats (Old and animated) |
| School & Grade | Herschel Girls School, Grade 10 |
| Sponsors | TYR |
| Twitter and Instagram names, Facebook name | Instagram: Georgia.nel7 (Don’t have Facebook or Twitter) |
| Community / church projects involved in | FISH (Faith in serving him) club at school, chapel services and divinity lessons. |
| Parents Names, siblings | Dad’s name is Jeremy, Mom’s name is Annette, Brother’s name is Jordan and my Twin sister’s name is Olivia. |
Q: You are passionate and doing so well in your Swimming tell me a little bit about how you started in Swimming and your journey in the Swimming arena up to now?
When I was younger, I mostly swam to get fit for water polo, as it was my chosen sport at the time. The first major gala I did was in 2011 where I swam a Level 1 swimming gala in Oudshoorn when I was 9. After that I took an extremely long break from swimming, as I HATED it. I would cry before every swimming practice and didn’t swim another gala until Level 2 in March 2016. For all those years, all I did was play water polo and the ONLY swimming I did was to keep ‘fit’ for water polo, whereas Olivia was still swimming competitively at the time. I did reasonably well at the Level 2 gala and later on got chosen for the South African team to head up to Rwanda and experience their facilities based on my results at Level 2’s. I had a blast up there, as I swooped up 11 medals and especially since I missed the last 2 exams of term 4. I then carried on to 2017 where I qualified for Junior Nationals and just slipped in a qualifying time for the 200m free for Youth Nationals. By this time, we (Olivia and I) made the hardest decision of our lives. Water polo or swimming? We trusted each other and we set our goals high to carry on competing in the swimming arena. It was the best decision of our lives so far we have NEVER regretted it since. By the end of Senior and Junior Nationals, Olivia and I managed to get into the South African Junior Elite Squad. We carried on training with a few other smaller galas’ throughout 2017 and then SA short course came along, where I posted most, if not all of my best times. One of these times was a 56.90 for the 100m freestyle coming 3rd to Erin Gallagher (my sister from another mister) and Olivia (my sister from the same mister). Another one of these times was a 1.04.45 in the 100m IM where I came 2nd to the stunning Nathania Van Niekerk. The rest of the year was mostly just a lot of fun where I sadly was sick before Commonwealth trials and didn’t have the best meet, but if everything was perfect, it wouldn’t be called life. 2018 is finally here and I’m excited to find out what it holds for me.
Q: Who are you? Describe yourself as a person.
I am a young lady who will give 101% at whatever I do. I hope to be someone who inspires many and makes a difference in this world, small or big.
Q: What is the highest accolade that you have achieved in Swimming and what is your greatest personal accomplishment?
The highest accolade I’ve ever achieved in swimming is beating my twin sister in the 200m freestyle at Western Cape Short Course Championships and therefore this is also my greatest personal achievement in my life. 
Haha, only joking, my greatest personal accomplishment is yet to come…
Q: What is the best piece of advice you have ever been given?
“Take a cement tablet and harden up.” – My Dad.
Q: What is your biggest challenge, and what do you do to manage this challenge?
My biggest challenge is being away from my dog, Monty and the way I deal with this challenge is just to look at my photo album of him.
Q: So, you are a brilliant swimmer and academic – but name 1 thing that you suck at 
Living without my twin.
Q: Do you want share a little on your faith journey so far?
My faith journey is simple. I’ve grown up in a Christian household where God has always been the center of my life. My parents introduced me to him and my school has connected me with him. My two favorite quotes from the bible are, “Let all that you do be done in love.” – 1 Corinthians 16:14, because if you ever wish to accomplish anything in life, you must be dedicated and committed to what you want to do, and to carry on being dedicated you must LOVE what you do! The other one is, “Have patience, God isn’t finished yet.” – Philippians 1:6. This is so true, and this quote relates to me so much, because I am a bit of a late developer and I honestly cannot wait to see what God has planned for me in the future.
Q: What are you most grateful for in your life at the moment?
My dog.
Q: In your opinion, what is the value of Education in a young person’s life?
Education arms you with the tools to become inquisitive and a desire to learn and become the best possible person you can be. I feel as if my school, Herschel Girls High School, has definitely already equipped me with these qualities and I cant wait for my last 2 years at this outstandingly amazing institution.
Q: How do you currently manage to balance all the things in your life?
I am very diligent with my time management and have learnt to get things done as soon as I receive the task. This is a very important skill to have mastered for the future in anyone’s life. I love my school (Herschel Girls) and swimming, and therefore it is easy to manage my busy life, as I love what I do every step of the way.
Q: How do you define success in life / How do you define a successful person?
A successful person is not always someone who achieves something that the whole world knows about, a successful person is a person who achieves THEIR extraordinary in life. If a snail takes the whole day to cross a garden, it has still done something extraordinary by its own standard. I define success not by if you’re wealthy or pre-eminent but by the amount of joy you produce in accomplishing YOUR aim or purpose.
Q: What’s your WHY ? Why do you do what you do?
I want to be the best person I can be and the only way I can do that is to work hard at what I love the most. And the example I want to set for the one’s coming after me is to make the best of the opportunities and you are given AND ALWAYS TAKE THE OPPORTUNITIES YOU ARE GIVEN. If I did not take the opportunity to go to Rwanda (which I initially was not going to) I would have most likely stopped swimming and would not be where I am today, and I am so grateful for my awesome parents for helping me make the decision to grab this amazing opportunity with both hands and got for it. Also to give back to the sport that has made you great by either coaching or being a mentor to carry on the legacy of your hard work.
Thank you so much for taking this interview. We would like to wish you all the best for your journey ahead. We look forward to following you as you go from strength to strength. Blessings!
