19 July 2021

TUT athletes head for Tokyo Olympics

Oscar Mavundla, Sokhwakhana Zazini, and TUT Athletics Coach, Stephen Mokoka, are among the squad of athletes selected to represent Team South Africa at the Tokyo Olympics. Olivier Mwimba will represent the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) at the games, scheduled to take place from 23 July to 8 August 2021.

Dr Shadrack Nthangeni, Acting DVC: Student Affairs and Extracurricular Development (SAED), said the University is proud of the athletes and hard work that led to the selection. 

“To be eligible to participate in the Olympics our athletes have displayed outstanding athletic abilities and achieved excellent results globally. We therefore appreciate the work ethics of both the athletes and their respective coaches. As the people’s University, we believe in the holistic development of athletes, to succeed both extracurricular and academically, hence participating in the Olympics is undeniably an achievement worthy to be celebrated by the entire University community,” he said.  

  • Sokwakhana Zazini specialises in the 400 metres hurdles. He won gold medals at the 2017 World U18 Championships and the 2018 World U20 Championships. In 2019, he won a silver medal at the Universiade, Italy.
  • Oscar Mavundla received a gold medal at the 2018 All-Africa University Games in Ethiopia and has competed at the SA national championships and the University Sport South Africa (USSA) championships. He also represented South Africa at the 2021 Confederation of University and Colleges Sports Association (CUCSA) Championships in Botswana and won a gold medal in the 400m race.
  • Stephen Mokoka, Athletics Coach at TUT, is a South African long-distance runner who competes in races ranging from 3000 metres to marathon distance. He is a four-time medalist at the Universiade and has represented South Africa internationally in road, cross-country, and track events.
  • Olivier Mwimba joined the TUT Athletics Club in 2016 as a sprinter, 100m and 200m runner. He was one of the athletes who went to the World Student Games in 2019 to represent the University and his country.
The University wishes our athletics all the best at the Olympics. 


Sokwakhana Zazini.
Oscar Mavundla.
Stephen Mokoka.
Olivier Mwimba.