Swimming South Africa withheld prize money owed to Tatjana Smith for over a year after her historic gold and silver medals at the 2023 World Championships, and allegedly failed to pay interest accrued during that delay. The federation has now agreed to pay the outstanding interest in full, following a letter of demand from Smith's attorney. The dispute has also drawn scrutiny to the federation's kit sponsorship rules and its handling of an information request over its contract with swimwear brand Arena.
Reporting by: Annemieke Thomaidis
Filmed by: Joel Seboa
Edited by: Joel Seboa
Produced by: Emilie Gambade
Creative input by: Malibongwe Tyilo
Sub-edited by: Kevin Flynn
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At the 2023 World Aquatics Championships in Fukuoka, Japan, legendary South African swimmer Tatjana Smith made history by becoming the first South African woman to win a World Championship gold medal.
She won the 200m breaststroke title and also claimed silver in the 100m breaststroke.
As a result, she was awarded a substantial amount of prize money.
And yet: according to her attorney, she never saw a cent of it for more than a year.
When Tatjana Smith did eventually receive the money from Swimming South Africa, the interest that had built up while the funds were being held was allegedly not paid over.
Now she has issued the national federation with a letter of demand seeking payment of that interest.
Attorney Wian Spies, acting for Smith and her husband Joel, has since confirmed that Swimming South Africa has agreed to pay the full amount of interest claimed.
Swimming South Africa operations manager Mafata Modutoane is alleged to have retained the interest - something he denied in a message to our colleagues at Rapport.
While he declined to discuss the details of the settlement, saying the discussions took place on a without-prejudice basis, Spies said there was an agreement that the outstanding interest would be paid in full.
The dispute also comes at a difficult time for Swimming South Africa.
A day before the letter of demand was sent, World Aquatics’ independent Aquatics Integrity Unit provisionally suspended Swimming South Africa’s president Alan Fritz and chief executive Shaun Adriaanse over alleged breaches of the World Aquatics Integrity Code.
But how did we get here?
The story begins in July 2023 at the World Aquatics Championships in Japan.
For winning gold in the 200m breaststroke, Smith was due to receive $20,000 in prize money. Her silver medal in the 100m breaststroke earned her a further $15,000.
Together, the prize money amounted to $35,000 — worth roughly R650,000 at the time.
According to Smith’s attorney Spies, however, the money was withheld by Swimming South Africa for more than a year.
In only one instance of communication, Swimming South Africa allegedly informed Smith in August 2023 that the prize money was being withheld because she was facing a fine for not competing in the prescribed sponsor kit.
The proposed fine amounted to €46,000 — an amount that exceeded the prize money Smith had earned, said Spies, which he argued was arbitrary and unreasonable, particularly because athletes were only informed of the penalties shortly before competition began.
In their first letter of demand regarding the prize money, which was sent in May 2024, Spies on behalf of Smith also requested further information on the fines. After that, Spies says, Swimming South Africa swiftly withdrew the fines.
By the time the 2024 Paris Olympics had rolled around, Smith had still not received her money. Then, the day she won her silver Olympic medal in the 200m breaststroke, during her interviews, Modutoane approached her husband and showed him the proof of payment of her prize money.
And that’s where he noticed something.
The interest had not been included.
According to the letter of demand, when he asked Modutoane why the interest had not been included, Modutoane said he was keeping it as “a management fee”.
The letter states that the couple weren’t sure whether Modutoane was joking or being serious. Either way, they say the interest was never paid over.
That allegation ultimately led to the latest letter of demand. On top of seeking that interest payment, Smith’s attorney has also laid a complaint with the Information Regulator.
They are pushing to get their hands on the official sponsorship agreement between Swimming South Africa and swimwear brand Arena.
According to Spies, the federation completely ignored an initial access to information request, letting the 30-day legal deadline slip right by. The whole dispute kicked off after Tatjana Smith was slapped with what her team calls “arbitrary” fines for not wearing the required Arena kit at the 2023 World Champs. But this is about more than just a fine: it’s raising real concerns that the federation’s rules are stripping athletes of their own commercial opportunities.
Under current Swimming South Africa policy, the federation holds total control over what athletes wear at competitions and events, and right now, that means wearing Arena, no exceptions.
According to Spies, however, Smith had never received any compensation for wearing Arena. This meant her opportunities to earn income through sportswear sponsorships while competing were limited — which is a significant concern for athletes who rely on sponsorships and competing to make a living.
Ultimately for one of South Africa’s most decorated athletes, the matter is not about prize or sponsorship money or the value of the interest, it is about accountability and the principle that athletes should receive the money they have earned representing South Africa on the world stage. DM
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