Some great news to put a smile on your face – up-and-coming Western Cape climber Tatenda Sibanda will be competing in the SANCF Youth Selections at CityROCK Johannesburg in March thanks to the support of the climbing community!
Tatenda competed in the Western Cape Climbing Provincial Championships on 18 and 19 February and his great performance earned him a spot in the selections event for the 2023 Youth World Championships climbing team. This means travelling to Johannesburg for the competition from 17 to 19 March, which comes with a number of large expenses that, unfortunately, Tatenda is currently unable to cover on his own.
Tatenda has been climbing with NPO Dream Higher as a part of their Core Team since 2017 and, after dedicated training to develop his power, endurance and technique, he made it into the Western Cape Climbing High-Performance programme, which offers competition-focused training and mentoring for athletes.
To further support his climbing journey, Dream Higher created a fundraiser through GivenGain to gather the money needed to get Tatenda to this next level of competitive climbing. A big goal was set – R10 000, which would cover flights and food expenses for the three days he would be in Johannesburg.
To the delight of everyone, the R10k goal was met in a matter of hours, and the total amount raised so far from 39 donations stands at R17 350! This means that Tatenda will indeed be heading through to the Youth Selections in March, and the extra funds raised will be used for future competition costs and Dream Higher’s other ongoing expenses, including transport, food, climbing permits for outings, and more.
It was incredible to see the community come together so quickly and enthusiastically to help out this young rising star, with Tatenda getting support from every corner, including his coaches, local climbers, and even American professional competitive climber Kai Lightner. Along with the cash, many donors also left notes of encouragement for Tatenda:
The fundraiser is still open and accepting donations so, if you’d like to support Tatenda and Dream Higher’s mission, you can make a contribution at the button below.
Well done and good luck, Tatenda – we’re all cheering you on!
