USSA News Years in the Game Hanlie Murray has been a faithful servant in sports for ten years and her love for the sport continues to grow. Murray is the Secretary to the Director Sport and Recreation at Tshwane University of Technology. Her ties with USSA come from temporarily assisting in the office when a position became available in the Directorate Sport and Recreation’s Pretoria campus.One of Murray’s first love is athletics; she relishes at the variety of events which the sporting code boasts and admits that there is always excitement in the air at any athletics proceedings. A memory that she holds close to her heart was at the Summer Universiade 2015 in Gwangju. “I was the team manager for the USSA athletics team. It was an amazing experience when Akani Simbine won gold in the 100m, he set a Universiade record and equaled the South African record. Justine Palframan also won gold in the 400m with a personal best,” she said. She also encourages more students to become involved in sports, “Sport plays a vital role in the development of mental strength and physical fitness.The benefits of sport must be outlined to all students, sport helps build confidence, you acquire new skills while being active and it also helps to release stress,” Murray remarked. “University sport is a platform from where the athlete/player can receive more exposure by participating in national and international events.Events like CUCSA, FASU and World Student Games give them the opportunity to compete against international students,” she added. She further acknowledged that these games assist with the development of student sport stars to future South African sport heroes. When asked about her favourite women athletes in South Africa, Murray did not shy away and named the following individuals: Caster Semenya, Justine Palframan, Kesa Molotsane, Ischke Senekal, Jo-Ané van Wyk, Anel Oosthuizen, Lynique Beneke, Letitia Saayman, Tamzin Thomas, Thembi Baloyi, Zinzi Chabangu, Maryke Brits; and said they have achieved so much and yet remain humbled. “It is important that female athletes get the same exposure as their male counterpart. Recognition, sourcing of more sponsorship and coverage in the media should be more prominent for our female athletes,” she concluded. Posted by Kimara Singh on 02 Sep, 2018. Source: