Tatjana Smith Chooses the Netherlands for Her Next Olympic Chapter

Tatjana Smith has announced that she plans to represent the Netherlands at the 2028 Olympic Games, a major change for the swimmer who won medals for South Africa at the last two Games. She shared the decision on social media after recently returning to competitive swimming following her retirement in 2024. Smith said she has always felt connected to both Dutch and South African heritage, but competing at the Olympics requires an athlete to choose one country. She explained that choosing South Africa at the start of her career was a decision she treasures, and that her next chapter will give her a chance to explore another part of her identity through sport. The move, she stressed, does not diminish her South African achievements: her medals, the pride she felt singing the national anthem, or the work she did alongside others. Smith also said she would continue to live and train in South Africa, even as she takes this next step in her swimming career. The breaststroke specialist won two gold and two silver Olympic medals across the 2020 and 2024 Games. A former world record holder in the 200-metre breaststroke, she has also said she hopes to learn from the Dutch sporting system and bring useful insights back to South Africa. Smith’s announcement follows a period of public attention around her dispute with Swimming South Africa over interest on prize money that the federation had withheld for a year after the 2023 World Championships. She said athletes deserve a system that helps them thrive, and described looking beyond the existing structure as one way to understand how it might be improved.