Ten years ago, Wian Roux took his dad’s advice to heart. It was the best thing he could have done because he will take aim with his bow at the Olympic targets in Paris two weeks from now.
When he does, his dad, Patrick, will be there to calm his nerves and give advice as his coach. They might be the first dad-son combination to represent South Africa at the same Olympics since 1992.
There is an interesting story to be told as to how this came about. Patrick takes it up.
“Wian has been a keen sportsman all his life. He played rugby and cricket as well as being a keen archer. Tennis was the sport Wian was passionate about. Like many youngsters, he dreamt of playing at Wimbledon one day. One day, I had to have one of those conversations every parent dreads. It is to give your child a reality check.
“I told Wian that he was an average tennis player. You will never get to play at Wimbledon. I did not want him to stop playing. I told him to keep playing tennis but for enjoyment. My advice was to instead put in the long, hard hours, taking aim with a bow on targets. Predicting that if he did, he would one day compete at the Olympic Games. Wian asked if I genuinely believed it was possible. I said yes. Now, ten years later, he will be doing so.”
Putting arrows into the centre of the bull is a family thing for the Rouxs’. Last year, during the World University Games, his mother, Gerda, was the team coach. She is herself an accomplished archer. She won a bronze medal at the 2013 World Championships. As far as can be established, she is one of only three South African female archers to have done so.
Patrick is the president of Archery South Africa and has represented South Africa on five occasions at the World Championships, winning silver and bronze in the team competitions.
Wian certainly has been coming through the ranks. During the 2018 African Youth Games in Algeria, he won a silver medal, which led to his selection for the Youth Olympic Games. Last year, the Tuks archer competed in the World University Games. He has also been the African and South African champion. In 2023, Roux set a South African record, scoring 651 out of 720 points.
As to his advice for his son during the Paris Games, Patrick said, “The only thing Wian can control during the Games is how he goes about taking the shot. The moment the arrow is in the air, there is nothing more he can do.
“So I told Wian that during the competition, he should imagine himself in a box of two metres by two metres with many cameras filming how he is executing his technique. His challenge will be to make sure that every execution should look perfect on the ‘film’. If it does, there is a real chance that the arrow will hit the bull.”
It will be the first time in 12 years that a South African archer competes at the Olympic Games. The Tuks student is the third male archer to do so and only the eighth since 1992. Five female archers have competed at the Games.