SA’s men hockey team still winless in Paris

After Monday’s medal mania, Team South Africa had a very subdued day four at the Olympic Games in Paris. The men’s hockey team’s chances of reaching the quarterfinals at the Games were dealt a blow. They lost 5-1 to world champions, Germany and remain winless after three matches in Pool A.

The South Africans lost 3-5 to the Netherlands on Saturday, before managing a 2-all draw against Great Britain on Sunday. The top four teams from the two pools consisting of six teams each, qualify for the quarterfinals.

The South Africans needed a win to have any chance of advancing to quarterfinal stage. They didn’t have the best of starts with the Germans opening the scoring 45 seconds into the contest. Gonzalo Peillat scored after the World Champions had managed to penetrate through the left-flank.

Christopher Ruehr doubled Germany’s lead, scoring a penalty stroke goal moments before the end of the first quarter.

After the restart, the Germans continued from where they left off. They sliced through the South African defense with ease before Justus Weigand scored their third goal. The Germans led 3-nil at half time.

Matthew Guise-Brown pulled one back for South Africa after they had won a penalty corner. But it was too little, too late as Germany scored two more goals to seal a 5-1 victory which catapulted them to the top of Pool A. The South Africans will play Spain on Wednesday before they play their final Pool match against France on Friday.

Meanwhile, South African rower, Paige Badenhorst, missed out on a place in the semi-finals of the women’s single sculls. The 25-year-old had started well and was among the top three of the six rowers, vying for three semifinal spots midway through the race.

However, she was overtaken by her competitors. She only managed a fourth-place finish in 7 min 44. 03 seconds, which wasn’t good enough for a semi-final spot. But her campaign isn’t over yet. She will contest the semifinals C and D next.

And in the men’s surfing event, Jody Smith’s Olympic campaign ended in disappointment.

The 36-year-old South African lost out on a place in the men’s quarterfinals to Peru’s Alonso Correa.

The Peruvian had better and more scoring waves and he advanced to the quarterfinals at the expense of Smith.