Naathierah Taliep from Mitchells Plain says her disability did not stop her from being selected by Pool South Africa to represent the country at the 2024 World 8-Ball Pool Championships in England.
She started playing pool after she was forced to quit soccer when she was diagnosed with psoriatic arthritis at the age of 15.
Naathierah, 23, is a member of Stallion’s Pool Club under the auspices of the Western Province Pool Union.
“I just decided to one day pick up the cue and my father saw my potential and motivated me to continue,” she says.
“Over the years I invested more time and became better at playing pool but it is quite difficult because there are a lot of times where I am in a lot of pain but I play through the pain.”
She has been Western Province’s top female player for the past six years and was called to the SA squad due to her consistently good performances over the past three years at national level in the A division.
She will leave Cape Town on 13 June to link up with the rest of the SA team in Johannesburg from where they will fly to Heathrow, England. The tournament starts on 18 June.
“I am kind of excited and looking forward to it but a bit stressed out due to finances as fundraising has been going slow as there aren’t many people who can support me financially but I always ask if they can’t support me financially to rather say a prayer for me so that things will work out.”
Naathierah need a total of R44 000 but is still about R15000 short to cover all her expenses.
If you would like to assist, please contact 0836224221 or 0814304912.