Team SA Surfing coach Greg Emslie was given a hero’s send-off by his neighbourhood and friends in Berea before making his way to King Phalo Airport for a flight to the Tokyo Olympics via Johannesburg.
The East London surfing legend was wearing his national colours and carrying his surfboard and had to hold back the tears after being showered with love and good wishes.
He will be tasked with coaching Bianca Buitendag, the sole athlete in the SA surfing team.
This year’s Olympics will include surfing for the first time and representing his country at the Olympics means Emslie will forever be in the record books.
The 44-year-old is raring to go and hunting for a medal in Tokyo.
“I’m looking forward to it,” said Emslie.
“I’ve been involved with professional surfing for a long time. It means a lot to me to be going as a coach.
“We are focused, we are going to get there and get all of the procedures out the way and then focus on the surfing at hand. We have a few days to acclimatise and we are looking forward to the challenge.
“The focus will be on the athlete. We are feeling strong,” said Emslie.
Surfing SA president Johnny Bakker is delighted to see the country have representation at the Games and is optimistic about Buitendag’s chances of medalling.
“From the Surfing SA viewpoint, we are very excited. We are just glad to have SA represented. We are confident.
“In terms of Bianca, with her ability, her chances of getting a medal are very good. She’s got an excellent coach in Emslie,” said Bakker.
A medal at the Olympics is something that can go a long way to propelling the sport of surfing to new heights.
Surfing SA, medal or not, will look at using the platform provided by Olympic qualification to grow the sport in the country.
“A medal will give surfing a lot of publicity and will get a lot of marginalised communities in SA to take up surfing as a sport,” said Bakker.
“We have a lot of programmes we have put into surfing, from grass roots and up. From the grass roots, we can build and get more involved in surfing programmes and the development of surfing as a sport.
“We have schools where people are taught to surf and learn life skills as a means of surviving. We see that in Durban, Cape Town and everywhere,” he said.
The Olympic surfing event is set for Chiba Beach, Japan from July 24 to August 2.
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