An inspiring para tri-athlete paid a visit to the Mamelodi Sundowns training facilities to give the players that extra bit of motivation.
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Masandawana's first team players and coaches were visited by Mhlengi Gwala yesterday, ahead of their all-important CAF Champions League quarter-final clash this weekend.
Gwala, who lost his leg during a brutal attack 2018 while training, is getting ready to represent South Africa at the Paris 2024 Paralympics and looks to have made quite the impact on the players and Rulani Mokwena.
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Para tri-athlete inspires Sundowns stars
Mamelodi Sundowns are set to take on Young Africans SC (Yanga) in the CAF Champions League quarter-finals, second-leg at Loftus Versfeld on Friday evening.
With no goals being scored in the first-leg, it's all to play for in Pretoria on Friday as Rulani Mokwena's troops will be eager to keep their continental trophy hopes alive.
To motivate the players for the rest of the season and tomorrow's crunch clash against Yanga, Mhlengi Gwala paid the squad a visit in Chloorkop.
"The first thing for me is to say thank you. Thank you for gracing us with your presence and coming all the way from Durban to speak to us. But also, thank you for being a life changer. Thank for using your words to inspire, you certainly inspired me, I told you this privately but I want to say it in front of everyone and I hope you've inspired them [the players]," said Rulani to Gwala, before he the latter was presented with a signed Sundowns jersey.
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The story of Mhlengi Gwala is both a heart-wrenching and also motivating, as he's shown his formidable mental strength to re-define his career after a traumatic ordeal.
Gwala had his leg mercilessly sawed-off by criminals around six years ago, while he was training for a triathlon in the early hours of the morning.
He was motivated by the support he received from fellow athletes and friends to make a swift comeback, which was coupled with his elite level of determination to win an African Triathlon Championship a year after his attack.
As per IOL, Gwala's attackers, who have never been caught, sawed into the calf of his right leg and severely damaging muscles, nerves, and bones, before they went for his left leg.
After he was attacked, Gwala’s friend started a Back-a-Buddy page for him to raise funds under the title ‘Get Mhlengi back on his bike’.
This campaign saw over R764,000 being raised for Gwala and it was vital for his medical expenses rehabilitation, as well as the construction of a new home for his mother.
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