Dr Thulani Ngwenya excited about his debut Olympic Games in Paris

Ngwenya, who is also the team doctor for the South African Football Association, is participating in the Olympics for the first time after being unable to attend previous Games due to circumstances beyond his control. He is thrilled to contribute to Team SA by taking care of the athletes at this global sporting event. Speaking to SABC Sport from the athletes’ village in Paris, Ngwenya discusses the responsibilities he undertakes both before and during the Games.

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''It starts back home even before we arrive here, we screen the athletes - do head to toe examinations to check if they are fit to travel and to participate at this level. We then travel with them to make sure that when they are here and are faced with any illness or injury we are here to support them and we also support them with some recovery strategies,'' Dr Ngwenya. 

His earliest memories of the Olympic Games are from watching his childhood hero, Josia Thugwana win the 42.2km marathon at the Atlanta Games in 1996. Little did he know that he would one day contribute to Team SA at the Olympics, not as an athlete, but as a team doctor.

''I remember the days of Josia Thungwana, so that was my first Olympics experience. He is from Mpumalanga and we looked up to him when it comes to sport. He went on and won that gold and that was my first experience when it comes to the Olympics,'' added Dr Ngwenya.

Ngwenya once believed he would ultimately represent his country as a footballer, not as a doctor. However, he retired from football prematurely, before his career even took off, to pursue his dream of becoming a medical doctor.

''Well at this time I was over ambitious as a footballer, so I thought that at some point I would play for the under 23 and end up at the Olympics. That was my main focus because at the time we didn't know anything about sports medicine,'' 

Ngwenya – CompetitionsNgwenya has travelled worldwide to cover major competitions, including the FIFA World Cup finals and the Olympics, adding to his ever-growing list of sporting events he has worked on.