National women`s rowing champion, Rika Geyser, has proved again that she is top of her league, winning the Severin Trophy in the 50th South African Rowing Championship Regatta 2005. The regatta was held this past weekend at Roodeplaat Dam, and in the Women`s A single scull event she easily outsprinted the other rowers and cruised home in 08:32.01, a whopping 22 seconds faster than her nearest rival. Geyser, who is a member of the Roodeplaat Rowing Club, also won the trophy in 2004.
Geyser`s laissez-faire attitude to her gold medal reflects that she does not view her win as a surprise: "In the first few hundred metres I struggled a bit, but then I got into my rhythm and pulled ahead quite easily." She stands out in a sport, which, until recently, has been dominated by men. "The number of elite women athletes is growing, but I believe there are not enough role models of women in sport. As an ambassador for not only women`s rowing but for women in sport in general, I hope my success can motivate girls and women to participate and excel in all sports," Geyser explains.
"Of course my main goal is to compete at the 2008 Olympics Games in Beijing but I believe that success cannot only be measured by one race on one day. Participation in sport can mean so much more than a medal around the neck. It is also about the personal growth in achieving your goal, whether it is to win an Olympic medal or being able to run around the block."
The next major event that Geyser faces is the World Cup in Switzerland in July this year. Geyser says: "This event attracts the elite rowers of the world. I hope to reach the A Finals which means a top six place."
Geyser`s sponsor, IT company arivia.kom, has been rooting for her since 2002. She proved her worth in the East London Buffalo Regatta in February 2005, when she took on the men and women rowers, and won the Men`s B Sculls and the Women`s A Sculls.
Says Marthe Bijman, GM: Group Marketing of arivia.kom: "As an organisation, we have mainly one goal when selecting a project to sponsor - transformation. We have been sponsoring women and black rowers - specifically Rika - for a number of years, and we congratulate Rowing South Africa (RowSA) on the recent establishment of their rowing academy, the RowSA Academy, at the High Performance Centre at the University of Pretoria. RowSA`s intent with the academy is to facilitate the transformation process within the sport, through offering a four-year scholarship at the centre to talented, previously disadvantaged rowers.
"Rika is also an ambassador for arivia.kom`s corporate social investment programme, since she is a very important role model for women empowerment and also an arivia.kom employee. At arivia.kom we take gender equity and women empowerment very seriously indeed."
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Arivia.kom is a leading South African IT company operating throughout Africa, with a proven ability to implement customised, integrated IT solutions and provide services at whichever global location clients may specify. Its end-to-end services and solutions generate significant business advantages for its clients. It has a thorough understanding of the market sectors on which it focuses and an impressive track record as proof of its capabilities. http://www.arivia.co.za.
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