Zanele Mdodana

Zanele Mdodana is a South African Netball player. She played in the Commonwealth Games in 2006, 2010 and 2014, as well as for the South African National Team, the SPAR Proteas, for 10 years. She has 82 caps for South Africa and has also participated in one World Cup. Zanele was a senior player in the team, and was captain and vice-captain of the SPAR Proteas. People see her as an international star, a mentor, a role model and an all-round success story in South Africa; Zanele is a true role model for girls in South Africa. She was born in New Brighton and raised in the Eastern Cape in Port Elizabeth. Zanele credits her primary school teacher for pushing her to play the sport that would one day make her an international star. After her retirement in 2015, Zanele established herself as one of the top sports coordinators at NMMU. Following this, she became the first Black Head Coach of Maties Netball at the University of Stellenbosch. In 2019 she was awarded Maties Team Coach of the Year. Zanele urges young girls to prioritise their education, keep participating in sport and strive to achieve their dreams and goals.
See what Zanele has to say about facing injuries in her netball career.

About Zanele Mdodana

About the book

Content

These videos form part of the book 'The Secret Balance of Champions – Health Challenges in Elite Sport'. The Secret Balance of Champions is about the health challenges that elite athletes may encounter during or after their career. The book consists of eight chapters, compiled by some of the best sports and medical experts in the world, and features the unique stories of 32 champions. This is a ‘must-read’ book for anyone striving to become the best version of themselves!

In the book: Petr Czech, Mo Farah, Marianne Timmer, Kiki Bertens, Dwight Phillips, Ila Borders, Pieter van den Hoogenband, Geremi Njitap Fotso, Danka Barteková, Arjen Robben, Maarten van der Weijden, Abhinav Bindra, Lydia Williams, Evgeniy Levchenko, Marit Bjørgen, Niccoló Campriani, Dorian van Rijsselberghe, Epke Zonderland, Blake Leeper, Elise Christie, Nouchka Fontijn, Zanele Mdodana, Florence Schelling, Alistair Overeem, Sarah Gregorius, Willie Gault, Chris Hoy, Steven Kitshoff, Jetze Plat, Suresh Raina, Apolo Anton Ohno, Chris Froome, and a foreword written by Marco van Basten.

Push Sports is the proud co-sponsor of this unique project.


Buy the book

About the authors

‘The Secret Balance of Champions’ was created and co-written by Vincent Gouttebarge (FIFPRO Chief Medical Officer), Gino Kerkhoffs (Orthopaedic Surgeon in elite sport at Amsterdam UMC) and Margriet de Schutter (former short-track speed skater and founder of Extopsporter.nl, an online platform for active and former elite athletes).

Editors

Official Supplier & Sponsorships

  • FIFPRO
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