Janine and Suzelle Davin Trust launched

THE Janine and Suzelle Davin Sport Trust launched on Friday raised thousands of Namibian dollars through an auction, hours before the completion of a fundraising golf day, also organised in honour of the two late sisters, who excelled in both hockey and tennis.

The two sports personalities, who were well known on the national and international sporting fronts, died late last year after a tragic car accident at the coast of Namibia. The trust was set up to enable young Namibian sportsmen and women to follow in the footsteps of commitment and discipline the late Janine and Suzelle left behind.At the fundraiser, the trust already had about N$120 000 in the kitty, but memorabilia and sports equipment auctioned on the night also contributed to it.A further N$200 000 was raised during the launch held after the golf day.In order to qualify for assistance from the trust, sportsmen and women should be dedicated and motivated in their respective disciplines, according to one of the trustees, Francois Erasmus.Erasmus, who is also the president of the Namibia Cricket Board (NCB), said the beneficiaries should also be talented and committed, hardworking and should embrace their dreams of becoming successful on the international scene.He said the potential beneficiaries should also believe in themselves, while they should have a positive attitude towards competition and life in general.Janine and Suzelle were the daughters of Herman and Jeanne Davin and the golf day in their honour was organised by Mark Barnard, the managing director of Canon and chairman of the Windhoek Golf Club.The parents initially had the desire to start something positive after the tragedy and this ultimately culminated in the formation of the trust.The trust currently consists of Herman and Jeanne, Francois Erasmus and Piet du Plooy.Swabou Life contributed N$60 000 on the day and was thus the anchor sponsor at the fundraising event.Thirty-one teams competed at the golf day.Five South African celebrities like Francois Pienaar, the 1995 South African World Cup rugby Springbok captain; Jake White, South Africa’s Springbok coach; Schalk Burger, Springbok player; Graeme Joffe of SuperSport and Jean Engelbrecht, a South African wine farmer and son of former Springbok, Jan were also present.”The Janine and Suzelle Davin Sport Trust is a noble initiative and Swabou Life, as a responsible corporate citizen, stands firm behind the noble objectives of the Trust.The late Janine and Suzelle were very young role models not only for the youth, their achievements impressed people from all walks of life, especially the Namibian sporting family and those in the academic field,” said Etienne Brits, chief executive officer of Swabou Life.Brits challenged corporate Namibia to come on board in support of the Janine and Suzelle Davin Sport Trust that aims to help young Namibians achieving high standards in sports.He said that the legacy of the late Janine and Suzelle must continue to inspire young and upcoming athletes to remain focus and constantly improve Namibia’s international rankings in sport.”Swabou Life will continue to play a pivotal role in facilitating all necessary support for the growth of the Davin’s Sport Trust and we hope that all Namibians can follow suit,” he said.Suzelle was the youngest of the two sisters and aged 18, she was the first Namibian to compete in the main draw of the Junior Wimbledon Tennis event in July 2006.She reached the second round and was ranked second in Africa on the International Tennis Federation (ITF) ranking in 2006 and she was the number one tennis player in Namibia since 2005.She also represented Namibia at the Federation Cup in Turkey in 2005 and 2006.She was voted as the Junior Sportswoman of the Year in last year and also got the same award by the Namibia Tennis Federation.She also played hockey and represented Namibia at the Senior Presidents Cup in South Africa, but before she passed away, she was awarded a bursary of four years from the University of Iowa in the US and was due to start with her studies and set forth her tennis career in January this year.She has been to 23 countries through her career.Janine (19) played junior hockey for five years on the national level and was also the captain of the senior team for both 2004 and 2005.She represented the under-21 side in 2004 and the Namibian senior team in 2004, 2005 and 2006.She scored a goal in extra-time to secure Namibia a bronze medal at the Africa Cup of Nations in 2005.She also played tennis on the junior level for years, while she was also part of the Federation Cup team which competed in Malta in 2004.She was also a nominee for the Junior Sportswoman of the Year in 2004 and won back-to-back senior sport girl of the year at the Windhoek High School (WHS) in 2004 and 2005.She studied Psychology at the University of Stellenbosch and played hockey for Maties Hockey Club.Earlier, in his message of condolences, Sport Minister John Mutorwa said: “Janine and Suzelle brought energy, charisma, passion and talent to Namibian hockey and tennis and will be deeply missed by their fellow athletes, coaches and the Namibian sporting community at large.Their sudden departure is a massive loss to the Namibian sporting family.The trust was set up to enable young Namibian sportsmen and women to follow in the footsteps of commitment and discipline the late Janine and Suzelle left behind.At the fundraiser, the trust already had about N$120 000 in the kitty, but memorabilia and sports equipment auctioned on the night also contributed to it.A further N$200 000 was raised during the launch held after the golf day.In order to qualify for assistance from the trust, sportsmen and women should be dedicated and motivated in their respective disciplines, according to one of the trustees, Francois Erasmus.Erasmus, who is also the president of the Namibia Cricket Board (NCB), said the beneficiaries should also be talented and committed, hardworking and should embrace their dreams of becoming successful on the international scene.He said the potential beneficiaries should also believe in themselves, while they should have a positive attitude towards competition and life in general.Janine and Suzelle were the daughters of Herman and Jeanne Davin and the golf day in their honour was organised by Mark Barnard, the managing director of Canon and chairman of the Windhoek Golf Club.The parents initially had the desire to start something positive after the tragedy and this ultimately culminated in the formation of the trust.The trust currently consists of Herman and Jeanne, Francois Erasmus and Piet du Plooy.Swabou Life contributed N$60 000 on the day and was thus the anchor sponsor at the fundraising event.Thirty-one teams competed at the golf day.Five South African celebrities like Francois Pienaar, the 1995 South African World Cup rugby Springbok captain; Jake White, South Africa’s Springbok coach; Schalk Burger, Springbok player; Graeme Joffe of SuperSport and Jean Engelbrecht, a South African wine farmer and son of former Springbok, Jan were also present.”The Janine and Suzelle Davin Sport Trust is a noble initiative and Swabou Life, as a responsible corporate citizen, stands firm behind the noble objectives of the Trust.The late Janine and Suzelle were very young role models not only for the youth, their achievements impressed people from all walks of life, especially the Namibian sporting family and those in the academic field,” said Etienne Brits, chief executive officer of Swabou Life.Brits challenged corporate Namibia to come on board in support of the Janine and Suzelle Davin Sport Trust that aims to help young Namibians achieving high standards in sports.He said that the legacy of the late Janine and Suzelle must continue to inspire young and upcoming athletes to remain focus and constantly improve Namibia’s international rankings in sport.”Swabou Life will continue to play a pivotal role in facilitating all necessary support for the growth of the Davin’s Sport Trust and we hope that all Namibians can follow suit,” he said.Suzelle was the youngest of the two sisters and aged 18, she was the first Namibian to compete in the main draw of the Junior Wimbledon Tennis event in July 2006.She reached the second round and was ranked second in Africa on the International Tennis Federation (ITF) ranking in 2006 and she was the number one tennis player in Namibia since 2005.She also represented Namibia at the Federation Cup in Turkey in 2005 and 2006.She was voted as the Junior Sportswoman of the Year in last year and also got the same award by the Namibia Tennis Federation.She also played hockey and represented Namibia at the Senior Presidents Cup in South Africa, but before she passed away, she was awarded a bursary of four years from the University of Iowa in the US and was due to start with her studies and set forth her tennis career in January this year.She has been to 23 countries through her career.Janine (19) played junior hockey for five years on the national level and was also the captain of the senior team for both 2004 and 2005.She represented the under-21 side in 2004 and the Namibian senior team in 2004, 2005 and 2006.She scored a goal in extra-time to secure Namibia a bronze medal at the Africa Cup of Nations in 2005.She also played tennis on the junior level for years, while she was also part of the Federation Cup team which competed in Malta in 2004.She was also a nominee for the Junior Sportswoman of the Year in 2004 and won back-to-back senior sport girl of the year at the Windhoek High School (WHS) in 2004 and 2005.She studied Psychology at the University of Stellenbosch and played hockey for Maties Hockey Club.Earlier, in his message of condolences, Sport Minister John Mutorwa said: “Janine and Suzelle brought energy, charisma, passion and talent to Namibian hockey and tennis and will be deeply missed by their fellow athletes, coaches and the Namibian sporting community at large.Their sudden departure is a massive loss to the Namibian sporting family.