REAL WORLD CHAMPIONS: A SuperSport celebration of incredible people

 - Johann Meintjes’ powerful story of Olympic redemption sets the tone as Your World of Champions launches Real World Champions with a five-part video series.

Your World of Champions, SuperSport, has launched Real World Champions, a campaign series highlighting the poignant and powerful stories of South Africans making a real impact in their communities and own lives.

Starting with stories of five South Africans who have used sport to achieve extraordinary feats, Real World Champions is aimed at inspiring audiences to share their own stories of their hometown heroes through personal storytelling. 

The series will debut new episodes every two weeks from 09 December until 03 February 2024 on SuperSport’s YouTube channel and on SuperSport Variety 4 (DStv Channel 209).

The series includes the likes of World Eightball Pool Champion Tasneem Solomons; recently crowned Africa Surf Tour: Senegal runner-up, Paul “Chow” Sampson; the extraordinary Mitchell’s Plain Golf Club, and the ever-growing lipstick artist, Ricollin Moodley. 

INSPIRATIONAL OPENER

The campaign premiers on Monday, 9 December, 2024 with the inspirational story of former Springbok tumbler and gymnast-turned-Olympic photographer Johann Meintjes.

Catch it at 7pm on the SS Variety 4 and SS Africa channels.

Meintjes was a gymnast of national renown, but a failed double-back somersault finish caused him to land on his neck, leaving him a wheelchair-bound paraplegic for the rest of his life. If perseverance and adaptability were to be personified, however, Meintjes would be its face.

Johann showed true Real World Champion spirit when he turned his passion for sport into teaching, coaching and sports photography.

During Paris 2024, he became the first accredited wheelchair photographer to cover the Olympic Games but his lifelong pursuit of Olympic glory, though not through his initial talents but newfound calling, is a riveting testimony.  

In a year that has seen more great sporting achievements - such as the Springboks’ Castle Lager Rugby Championship victory, the Team SA’s commendable medal haul at Paris 2024 and the Proteas Women achieving the status of being the first South African cricket team, male or female, to reach consecutive ICC World Cup tournament finals - it would be easy to solely focus on the achievements of elite athletes in these more popular sports. 

But the mandate to highlight and support the growth of sport in South Africa is one SuperSport takes beyond the realms of popularity and stretches the ambit with which sport can reach. The Real World Champions campaign perfectly encapsulates this.

ARTISTIC FLAIR

Set to air on 23 December 2024, Ricollin Moodley’s story best exemplifies the agility of sport as through his art – he encapsulates the spirit and atmosphere of each of our better-known sporting heroes such as the Springboks.

The artistic flair of Ricollin is beautifully foiled by the tenacity of Tasneem Solomons. Having gained widespread media attention following her stunning come-from-behind victory to make history and become South Africa's first-ever World Eightball Pool Federation Ultimate Pool women’s champion – her episode is a must-watch.

SURFING SENSATION

The other two Real World Champions are Muizenberg’s surfing sensation Paul “Chow” Sampson and the valiant Mitchell’s Plain Golf Club. With both stories perfectly encapsulating the beauty and importance of mentorship and access, viewers can expect to watch heartwarming stories of excellence in the face of adversity. 

“We are really excited to launch this campaign as Your World of Champions because it is a magnificent way to acknowledge vast contributors to the South African sporting fraternity,” said SuperSport CEO Rendani Ramovha.

“The heart-warming nature of each story is the cherry on top. What truly is phenomenal is the level of skill, expertise and passion each Real World Champion puts into perfecting their craft to become the true world-beater that they are today.

“We carefully chose each Real World Champion because of the power of their story to not only resonate with ordinary South Africans but also inspire everyone to make a difference in their lives and their community.”

With a five-minute run time each, the episodes are short but impactful, rousing yet tear-jerking and - without a doubt - packed with pearls of wisdom and excellence. Sprinkle in jaw-dropping shots of each Real World Champion in their element and you have a masterpiece in storytelling.

Each episode is unique to itself but threaded to the others through the sheer and unbridled representation of the power of human will to overcome any hurdle along the way to reaching their goal.

SHARE YOUR STORY

Viewers are encouraged to identify and share stories of Real World Champions within their communities. To submit your Real World Champion(s) for consideration, send an email to realworldchamps@supersport.com  detailing in no longer than 500 words why your proposed candidate deserves to be profiled by SuperSport.

Provide a referral and any other supporting documentation. Submissions will be accepted from 09 December until 30 March 2025.

To watch Johann Meintjes’ story and to keep up to date with each episode as it premieres, viewers can subscribe to SuperSport’s YouTube channel or watch them right here on supersport.com.

To catch each episode on broadcast, viewers can reconnect or stay connected to DStv and DStv Stream and follow daily scheduling details to plan their viewing.