Jo-Ané van Dyk (26), a dietetics student at North-West University in Potchefstroom and a farm girl from Heidelberg, made 80 000 spectators at the Stade de France sit up straight when she made the best throw of her career.

Her javelin flew 64,22 m, meaning she exceeded the qualifying distance for automatic participation in the finals by 2 m.

Jo-Ané grew up on her parents Johan and Marjo van Dyk’s farm, Karringmelksrivier, between Swellendam and Heidelberg. They run a mixed farming operation including a dairy, canola and sheep.

It was here, during the Covid-19 lockdown before the previous Olympics, that she practised her technique on a track her father cleared between the fields, and built muscles in a barn with homemade gym equipment that her father crafted from scrap metal.

“Her life as a farm child definitely contributed to her success. Jo-Ané loved playing outside and always rode around with her dad on the bakkie. She really enjoyed growing up on the farm, and it definitely contributed to her development,” says Johan du Plessis, Jo-Ané’s fiancé, whom she will marry on October 5.

Johan and his family were speaking to African Farming under the Eiffel Tower, on their way to the Arc de Triomphe.

Talent and determination

Jo-Ané picked up a javelin for the first time when she was 12. “They always tell the story of an older girl in Heidelberg who won the South African championship in javelin. There was a celebration for her in the school hall, and that’s where Jo-Ané decided she also wanted to throw javelin,” says Johan.

For a while, she practised on her own with the help of a neighbour who fine-tuned her technique. She later received coaching in George.

Jo-Ané, who also excelled in netball but decided to focus on javelin, won her first national event and “almost never lost again after that”, says Johan.

“She had the talent and determination, and since she started training with Terseus Liebenberg in Potchefstroom in 2016, she really started throwing far. Since 2019, she has steadily broken her personal best distance each year.”

Jo-Ané achieved several personal bests this year and Johan says she was determined to reach the qualifying distance for automatic participation in the final.

“It was incredible. Our tickets were on the other side of the stadium but my future sister-in-law and I sneaked in so we could sit behind her and see her well. We wore a flag and T-shirts with her face on our chests.

“After her excellent throw, we just celebrated. The only disappointment was that we didn’t see her throw again that day because it wasn’t necessary for her to do so.”

Experience counts

Johan believes her participation in the 2021 Tokyo Olympics, where she qualified in the last position, prepared her well for this year’s Games.

“Jo-Ané is now an experienced Olympian. She’s no longer just going to participate but to do well.”

Christo Vorster, principal of Outeniqua High School where Jo-Ané matriculated, remembers her as a driven student with an excellent work ethic.

“When she sets her mind on something, she goes all out for it. She used to practise in the gym in the mornings, and I gave her history as an eighth subject in the afternoons. She was so tired, but she always paid attention and did her part.”

Backing Jo-Ané

Meanwhile, the entire Southern Cape farming community stood behind Jo-Ané.

“All of us at Sentraal-Suid Co-operative (SSK), and I think the whole of South Africa, are incredibly proud of her. She’s a native of our area who is doing incredibly well on the world stage,” said Francois Swanepoel, CEO of SSK, where her father is a member.