Six-time South African National Figure Skating Champion, Lejeanne Hennessy, grows the sport for all ages at SA School of Skating.
Every day is winter on the ice and to celebrate the season, this week we meet Lejeanne Hennesy – a driving force in SA figure skating who as a multiple champion, is part of 3 generations of skaters in her family, each carrying the torch further. Lejeanne’s mum, Susan Marais, coached her to success on the ice and now, they have joined forces to coach together at SA School of Skating (https://saschoolofskating.co.za/) where they offer expert training to junior and senior students alike.
From Lejeanne’s own daughter, young Alanna Hennessy who has grown up with an ice-skating swan for a mother and grandmother to under 10 National Champion and international skater, Ava Keenan, and 2022’s Newcomer of the Year, Onkaribile Mongatane, the students demonstrate and share a passion for the sport inspired by their leaders and coaches. Inspiration which saw student Tristanè Schmulian become the youngest South African to land a ‘double axel’ jump. The freedom of expression and skill it takes to glide, dance, spin and jump on ice provides an exceptional sense of achievement and creative outlet for all students. It did for adult figure skater, Natasja Van Niekerk, and offered an escape and healing from a slump of depression after she faced personal loss when her mom got ill then sadly, passed away.
However, the sport does come with challenging expenses, especially for senior students, including the cost of lessons, imported ice-skates and handcrafted, sequined costumes for competitions. Senior student Natasja enthuses about the enjoyment she receives from her time cutting across the ice but admits careful financial management is a must for her to continue to develop her skills. Fortunately, Natasja banks with Capitec.
Natasja explains, “In order to live and love the sport, you need the money. So you need to be able to know how to budget and how to save properly. What I appreciate most about banking with Capitec is their digital payments which are very easy to do. Not only that, the app is very, very user-friendly and the bonus on the side, their low fees are incredible in these tough times.”
And compared to finding your feet on ice, it’s a breeze signing up for live better savings.
“The Live Better process is as simple as opening your Capitec banking app, clicking on Live Better, following the how tos and deciding which saving option works best for you. Live Better from Capitec bank really offers me a helping hand in saving for stuff that I enjoy, so that I can live better and enjoy more,” Natasja adds.
To find out more, and enjoy all the benefits of banking with Capitec, visit https://www.capitecbank.co.za/personal/transact/.
Figure skating offers so much more than just a competitive sport. It is creative expression, therapy and such a fun way of keeping fantastically fit using every muscle in your body. However you choose to enjoy Winter, the take-away here is – take a little leap of faith and an expert class or 2 can open up a live better journey to last a lifetime – or in the case of Susan, Lejeanne and Alanna – 3 lifetimes!
Capitec Weekly Competition:
Start your journey today with a chance of winning a R1000 cash prize, courtesy of Capitec. Simply respond to the competition post on theinsidersa.co.za’s social media platforms using the hashtag #LiveBetterWithCapitec. The competition closes at midnight on Sunday, June 25. Terms and conditions apply, and they can be found here Ts&Cs.