South Africa's Oarsome Foursome: all you need to know about gold medal number three

Blazing paddles: Ndlovu celebrates gold

South Africa’s lightweight rowing four showed their golden touch in the water yesterday as they clinched a record-equalling THIRD Olympic title at London 2012.

In a dramatic last-gasp victory which pushes Team South Africa up to an unprecedented eighth in the medals table, Sizwe Ndlovu, Matthew Brittain, John Smith and James Thompson left the commentators spluttering with a sensational finishing burst to match team-mate Chad Le Clos’s golden 200m butterfly win over Olympic great Michael Phelps on Tuesday evening in the pool.

Former Pretoria policeman Ndlovu, 32, said afterwards: "This is so exciting, amazing...I took rowing up at school in 1997, and now I'm standing here. My brothers and sisters are supporting me back home.

"We stuck to our game plan. We knew Denmark would start strongly, and we had one call - to go for it in the last 500m. It worked.

"Rowing is big in schools but otherwise financially it's an expensive sport, this gold will be good for South Africa's rowing community and help give it a better image."

While the international feed warned us about Australia closing on the highly-fancied Denmark in the closing 200m, it was in fact the other side in gold and green who were sniffing a late surge to gold. South Africa were third at halfway and fourth at 1,500m but it was over the fateful last 500m that the oarsome foursome produced the blazing paddles.

Coached at Pretoria University’s High Performance Centre which also produced South Africa’s first gold medallist of London 2012 Cameron van der Burgh, they left first Australia, then the not-so-great Danes and hosts Great Britain in their wake.

As the lakeside erupted, South Africa finished in 6min 02.84secs, just 0.25secs ahead of Britain with Denmark taking bronze a further 0.07 seconds behind.

All the talk will now be of Ndlovu, also known as Lawrence, who became the first black African medallist in an boat Olympic boat. The oldest member of the crew at 32, he’s a former police reservist who worked, appropriately, for the Pretoria flying squad.

Born in Johannesburg, Ndlovu grew up in Newcastle, Natal but went to Mondeor High School south of Johannesburg, where he was introduced to rowing by the late headmaster Tom Price. He recalls: “Tom was actually the one who saw the potential in me and encouraged me to row. He used to pick me up in the mornings at 5am, make me train before classes, then go to school and also train in the afternoons. That was Tom Price, what a great man. He passed away in 2006.”

After over a decade of dedicated paddling at Roodeplaat Dam, he told Graeme Joffe before the Olympics: “Yes it took me 11 years to qualify for Olympics. The past two have been difficult. It is a tough event, but we are all equal, the boats are the same and it is just whoever is ready, whoever is more hungry.

“To qualify as a lightweight crew, we need to be 70kg, so we’ve had quite a bit to lose! Maybe one can weigh 72kg and we can donate amongst each other. So, if anyone is having a tough day, we share the weight and we work together to that.

“I don’t just row in a four. I came ninth in the World Cup in the single sculls in 2009. But I love the lightweight four. When things are going well, you are always going to love it and obviously if things aren’t going well, you aren’t going to love it. You are always going to blame three people but it has been good. I am enjoying it, I am loving it.”

Behind Ndlovu in the boat, Brittain, 25 from Johannesburg, lists his hobbies as cycling, swimming and rock climbing. His brother Lawrence Brittain who is also a rower and has represented South Africa at international level. Brittain won a gold medal with fellow golden boy Smith at the 2011 World U23 Championships in Brest, Belarus.

After finishing second to the Danes in Wednesday semi-final, Brittain said: "We don't chase the medal. We chase the good race and that's what gives us the good result."

Smith, 22, cut his hand in the semi, smearing his blood all over the boat. A Germiston lad, he also does a bit of male modelling.

Capetonian James Thompson, 25, learned to row at St Andrews College in Grahamstown where he also played rugby.

Nobody really expected a win for a four who came 11th at the past two World Championships – before they came in second in the World Cup regatta at Lucerne earlier this year.

Only one rowing expert really believed in their potential - Don Cech, now coaching rowing on the lake just outside Grahamstown where Thompson learned the trade - won South Africa’s only other rowing medal when he team up with Ramon Di Clemente for the men's pairs bronze at Athens 2004.

The voice of rugby backs Springboks to win the World Cup: They'll do it by stealth says Eddie Butler

Eddie Butler does not suffer fools, gladly or gwladly, to use the Welsh phrase meaning “righteous nation”.

That’s why, when the former Welsh captain starts talking about South Africa winning this World Cup in New Zealand, people tend to listen. The fact that he’s well over six foot, has fathered six children and is still intimidating at 54 helps too.

Yesterday in the British Observer newspaper – not one of those trashy tabloid phone-hacking scandal sheets – the world’s finest rugby commentator was quite emphatic about how the Springboks are doing in the land of the long white cloud.

Though the Springboks left South Africa under a cloud of their own, Butler reckons the reigning champions are quietly on course to become the first nation to win the Webb Ellis Cup three times.

Despite a highly-fortunate 17-16 victory over Butler’s Wales in their opening Pool D encounter, the most respected voice of rugby in Britain insists: “South Africa seem in an ominously understated mood. Even in “Little Jo'burg” last Thursday night, in front of a massed throng of expats in North Shore, their 87-0 victory against Namibia was registered as routine. The defending champions seem to be doing this World Cup by stealth.

“Perhaps it was that game against Wales that has knocked them off the radar. There is a theory that they spent so much time with all their sponsors at swanky farewell parties back home that they arrived a little overfed and watered in New Zealand. We know how dangerous it can be to party hard.

“There is another theory: that Wales simply played very well and provided the kick in the rear that the defending champions needed.”

I’ve been saying that all along and taking flak from the not-so-sheepish Wales fans on www.gwladrugby.com, but such theories carry weight when Butler insists: “South Africa are not light on confidence on any road, even if for the moment it is hushed. As is their coach, Peter de Villiers, normally a car crash of quotes waiting to happen. Many South Africans are embarrassed by his gaffes. On Schalk Burger's eye-gouging incident in 2009, he said: "Rugby is a contact sport. Shall we all go out and buy tutus?"

“But there seems to be a growing body of support for De Villiers, especially among Afrikaans speakers who recognise that what comes out of his mouth in English may have started off as a slightly less outlandish thought in his first language.

“Besides, it may serve the Springboks well to have a coach who pulls all the attention towards himself.”

South Africans – especially those who love to watch the Afrikaans-only braai-barbeque World Cup match-day magazine programme “Toks and Tjops” (which is unlikely to attract Julius Malema as a guest anytime soon) – will be particularly intrigued to hear Butler insist: “It is said that De Villiers’ internal man-management skills are excellent, and that his players adore him.”

Butler points out: “When it came to the last rounds of the Tri-Nations, at home, the Springboks lost to Australia, but beat New Zealand – or New Zealand B – in their last game. Then they ate, said goodbye, travelled here, were scared by Wales and started to put themselves back into shape against Fiji (49-3) and Namibia (87-0). They are cranking it up.”

With Bismarck du Plessis –arguably the world’s best hooker despite the presence of World Cup winning captain John Smit starting ahead of him in New Zealand - ready to be launched in the Springboks’ final pool match on Friday, Butler believes De Villiers has been spot on with tricky selection problems.

As I said on eTV’s Sunrise on Monday morning, Bismarck will emerge against Samoa with steam coming out of his ears and Butler says: “The Springboks still beat themselves up a bit as to whether Smit should be keeping Bismarck out of the starting line-up. But the captaincy of South Africa comes with baggage that no other country can imagine, and Smit has done wonders as an ambassador facing the outside world and as a glue keeping his team together. He should be allowed to choose the moment of his departure.”

With his usual sharp eye for form, Butler also points out the value of Danie Russouw, the 33-year-old who has shone at lock while the iconic Blue Bull Victor Matfield and his “not so batterproof” partner Bakkies Botha struggle with injury.

He argues: “It’s typical of the rising determination of the Springboks that Rossouw, even at the ripe old age of 33, has seized his chance and has been outstanding.

“Schalk Burger is back to his rampaging best. He insisted on returning to the field against Namibia, with stitches in his head, when he could have chosen to have the rest of the evening off. There seems to be an infectious enthusiasm among even the old guard.”

Butler also highlights the form of Frans Steyn and Jaque Fourie and argues Bryan Habana, who scored a record-breaking 39^th Bok try against Namibia – should make way for Francois Hougaard on the wing.

He says: “Hougaard looks a bundle of cranky energy, aggressive, darting and speedy. He is almost the team's talisman, the player who prefers to play at scrum-half but who has come on as a wing and made a real impact. He is the sign that the Springboks are stirring.”

And as for all that guff about South Africa throwing Friday’s clash with Samoa in an attempt to meet Ireland rather than Australia in the quarter-finals, Butler blusters: “There's no chance of that. Route one, please, that goes through the brick wall, all the way to the title.”