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Para Cycling

Du Preez eyes glory at another Paralympic Games after realising childhood dream

Nicolas Pieter Du Preez won the Para cycling men’s time trial H1 race at the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games. Next year, the South African athlete hopes to capture the spotlight in front of his wife and son at Paris 2024 16 Jun 2023
A male athlete raises his right arm in celebration while holding a gold medal with his left hand.
Du Preez won his maiden Paralympic medal at the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games.
ⒸToru Hanai/Getty Images
By Ayano Shimizu | The IPC

Nicolas Pieter Du Preez still gets goosebumps when he thinks about the welcome he received in South Africa, upon his return from the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games.

The Para cyclist, who won the gold medal in the men’s time trial H1 race, only expected his wife and son to congratulate him. But when he returned to his community, people were waiting for him in the streets, holding flags and banners that read “Welcome back, Supa Piet.”

“People were screaming and shouting on the side of the road. I must say, I don’t cry easily but it was really something. Tears were just flowing,” said the two-time Paralympian, who is known as Supa Piet in his home country. 

“I didn’t realise or even think that people would come out with flags and banners. It was very special,” said Du Preez.

For the Para athlete, sports have played a big role in his life since he was a child. In addition to Para cycling, he also takes part in Para triathlon and Para athletics competitions. He made his Paralympic debut in Para athletics at London 2012. 

While Tokyo 2020 is undoubtedly one of his career milestones, the veteran Para athlete is not ready to stop. With the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games approaching, he hopes to put on a show again at the world’s third largest sporting event and even have fun while doing it. 

“I’ve won all the gold medals, (including at) World Championships, more than once. So it’s almost like now I’m enjoying sports,” said Du Preez, who competes in Para cycling using a handcycle. 

“But I am competitive, I race to win.”

Childhood dream

Growing up in South Africa, Du Preez dreamed of competing at the Olympic Games. He was an up-and-coming triathlete before he was hit by a car in a cycling accident when he was 23 years old.

He fractured his neck. As a result, he can move his wrist, biceps and shoulders but otherwise has limited muscle function. 

“Since I was six years old, I had dreamed of going to the Olympics. I thought I was well on my way, and then the accident happened, and the goal changed from the Olympics to the Paralympics,” he recalled. 

After he competed at the London 2012 Games, Du Preez’s passion for sports continued to grow. He completed the gruelling Ironman, which features a 3.8 km swim, a 180 km bike race and a full marathon. He also completed a roughly 8 km swim in the Atlantic Ocean between Cape Town and Robben Island in South Africa. 

At the Tokyo 2020 Games, he crossed the finish line in the men’s time trial H1 race in 43 minutes, 49.41 seconds to win his maiden Paralympic gold medal. The silver medal went to Italy’s Fabrizio Cornegliani, who achieved a time of 45:44.56, while Belgium’s Maxime Hordies crossed in 47:01.23 for the bronze. 

“I was 41 years old, 35 years after having that childhood dream of winning a gold medal. It’s really hard to tell you how much that means. It’s incredibly special,” Du Preez said.  

But the gold medal means much more to Du Preez than realising his childhood dream. The Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games were held in 2021, following a one-year postponement due to the COVID-19 pandemic.  

“The big thing is, for our country, South Africa, it wasn’t just COVID, there were riots. There were riots going on literally a couple of weeks before Tokyo,” he explained. 

“For me, it was a privilege to give a little bit of hope in such challenging times, even if it was just for one day.” 

Team Supa Piet

Also born with a degenerative eye disease, Du Preez said he has lost central vision in his left eye and his condition is worsening. He hopes to compete in front of his family at the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games, which will take place between 28 August and 8 September 2024. 

“I’m not sure if I’m going to get to Paris because (my vision) is getting bad. I’m starting not to enjoy driving (on) roads that I don’t know,” he said. “But so far so good. So for me, as long as my eyes are OK, I’m good to go. 

“I feel like Paris will be my last Games that I can really go for and where I think my eyesight will probably still be OK,” he added. “I want to give Paris a good go and after Paris I want to see where life takes me. Depending on my eyesight, I might be back in 2028. We’ll see.” 

He also hopes his wife and son will watch him compete in person at Paris 2024. His family travels with him for competitions, but did not go to Tokyo for the Games due to the pandemic. 

“The amount of sacrifice that my family has to make for me to be able to do this is astronomical, because it’s an absolute team effort between me, my wife and my son, in terms of the hours spent traveling,” Du Preez said.  

“My son is six years old now. The first Paralympics that he was aware of was Tokyo 2020. He only saw me on TV so hopefully he will be in Paris.” 

He is also set to compete in the men's 100m and 200m T51 races at the World Para Athletics Championships, which will be held from 8-17 July 2023 in Paris.

Making a difference

Du Preez, who works as an actuarial analyst at Deloitte South Africa, says that sports create a “purpose” in life. In particular, he sees the impact that Para sports have had on people with disabilities. 

For instance, one of his friends, who has a similar physical impairment as him, started becoming more independent after seeing Du Preez finish the Ironman race. 

“He was very positive. He was living with his parents and was really happy but not independent. After seeing me finish the Ironman, he decided, ‘If Pieter can finish the Ironman, I can dress myself and become more independent’. He contacted me again and asked me for tips," he said.

A male athlete poses at an awards ceremony with a silver trophy.
Du Preez was one of the nominees for the 2016 Laureus World Sportsperson of the Year with a Disability Award. @Ian Walton/Getty Images for Laureus

“Today, he is dressing himself; he moved out of his (parents’) house. He thought he was never going to get a girlfriend, but got a girlfriend. His quality of life changed.  

“That’s the impact of Para sports. It’s not (just) inspiration and hope, but it actually changes people’s lives by making them believe they can do more physical things,” the Paralympian said.  

“So it’s very special to me. I’m quite proud to say that that’s the kind of impact that one person can make.” 

 

 

Du Preez is part of Team Deloitte, an extraordinary cohort of dual-career athletes who exemplify the unique qualities required to succeed in both elite sports and business.  He is joined by 18 other Deloitte colleagues, two Deloitte alumni, and four external athletes on the qualification journey to Paris 2024.  

As part of this team, Du Preez brings the skills, experiences, passion, and perspectives of a world class athlete to his actuarial work each day. Team Deloitte exemplifies a range of unique dual-career journeys and Deloitte is keen to apply the principles behind it, such as flexibility, inclusivity, resilience, and wellbeing, to its TOP partnership in the context of athlete transition.  

Deloitte will help envision new possibilities for Paralympians, Olympians and potential future employers by helping refocus their talents toward new career opportunities.

Related Topics

Cycling
South Africa
Nicolas Pieter Du Preez

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