Page 46 - Thetha Issue 6

ALUMNI NEWS

Rising Stars Making Their Mark

Thembinkosi Josopu Delaine Mentoor

Thembinkosi Josopu has been working to uplift society for
the past 17 years, serving mainly in the youth development, During the Tokyo 2020 Olympics,
legislative and policy development space. He holds a BA held in 2021, Delaine Mentoor
Honours degree in Development Studies from Nelson made history as the first ever
Mandela University, and is currently working in Corporate female coach of an Olympic
Governance, serving in some of the country’s most water polo team. She was
notable governance structures. His roles include chairing head coach of the South
the Capacity Building and Governance sub-committee of African women’s water
the National Skills Authority, heading up the Economic polo team, who were
Governance and Management stream within the African also the first women’s
Peer Review Mechanism (APRM), and chairing the Labour water polo team
Activation Programme of the Unemployment Insurance to represent the
Fund (UIF). He is also a member of various committees African continent
in the National Economic Development Labour Council, at the Olympics.
including the Presidential Working Committee on Jobs. Not surprisingly,
Thembinkosi is a former board member of the Quality she was named
Council on Trade and Occupations. He previously worked Coach of the Year
as the Service Delivery Manager for Early Warning Systems at the Momentum
at Siyakha Isizwe Trading – a role which saw him tackling GSport Awards 2021
municipal water-related issues. He also worked in the – and she managed
Department of Trade and Industry, as head of office for all this while being
the Deputy Minister. In his home community of Zwide, a mother to a busy
Gqeberha, he drives community development through his one-year-old. Delaine
personal foundation and local soccer team. also coaches the
South African women’s
under-20 water polo
team, Nelson Mandela
University’s women’s
water polo first team
as well as the girls’
water polo first team
at Gqeberha’s Pearson
High, where she is also the head of aquatics and sports
administrator. Prior to this, she coached South Africa’s
under-18, under-17 and under-16 girls’ water polo teams
– and played for the South African women’s water polo
team herself, participating in world championship events.
Delaine obtained her degree in Human Movement Science
from Nelson Mandela University in 2019 and uses her
knowledge from her studies not just to provide water polo
coaching, but overall health and fitness advice, to develop
strong and healthy athletes.

46 | Thetha Edition 6 | 2022