Dambile leads South Africa’s Commonwealth Games medal charge

By Palesa Matlala

• Sinesipho Dambile sprinted to gold in the men’s 200 metres, while Kyle Rademeyer, Timothy Meuwsen and Donne Breytenbach also climbed onto the podium.

• Team South Africa has won 28 medals at the Commonwealth Games so far, with seven gold, 11 silver and 10 bronze medals before the final day.

Team South Africa produced another memorable day at the 2026 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, collecting more medals and moving closer to a strong finish.

By the end of Saturday, South Africa had won 28 medals.

The team has collected seven gold, 11 silver and 10 bronze medals, placing the country 11th on the medals table with one day of competition still to come.

The biggest celebration came on the athletics track.

Sprinter Sinesipho Dambile stole the show by winning gold in the men’s 200 metres.

Dambile exploded down the straight and crossed the finish line in a brilliant 19.96 seconds.

He comfortably beat Nigeria’s Udodi Onwuzurike, who took silver in 20.09 seconds.

It was one of South Africa’s best performances of the Games.

Another athletics medal came from Zakithi Nene in the men’s 400 metres.

Nene produced a determined run from lane two to finish third in 45.21 seconds and claim the bronze medal.

In the field events, pole vaulter Kyle Rademeyer also delivered a superb performance.

He cleared a season best height of 5.70 metres on his second attempt to secure the silver medal.

Rademeyer then made three brave attempts at 5.80 metres but could not clear the bar.

Australia’s Kurtis Marshall claimed the gold medal.

South Africa’s judokas also impressed.

Timothy Meuwsen fought his way to the men’s under 81 kilogram final after dominating his earlier matches.

He needed just 17 seconds to beat Samoa’s Peniamina Percival in the quarterfinals.

In the semifinals, he defeated Cyprus’s Odysseas Georgakis after a tough contest that lasted more than six minutes.

Although he lost in the final to Malaysia’s Amir Daniel Bin Abdul Majeed, Meuwsen walked away with a proud silver medal.

Donne Breytenbach also stepped onto the podium after winning bronze in the women’s under 57 kilogram division.

She opened her campaign by defeating Zambia’s Sylvia Nawila with an Ippon in just 35 seconds.

After losing in the semifinals, Breytenbach bounced back to beat Marie Begue of Mauritius in the bronze medal contest.

Her victory added another medal to South Africa’s growing collection.

With one day of competition remaining, Team South Africa will hope to add to its impressive medal haul and finish the Games on a high.

The Commonwealth Games bring together athletes from countries across the Commonwealth every four years and are one of the world’s biggest multi-sport events.

Pictured above: Sinesipho Dambile led Team South Africa’s medal charge by winning gold in the men’s 200 metres at the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow.

Image source: Sinesipho Dambile.