Tam SA swimming star Tatjana Schoenmaker sent a warning to her rivals when she set a new 100m breaststroke Olympic record on Sunday.
Favourite in the 200m event as well, the 24-year-old powered into today’s 100m semifinals in a time of 1:04.82.
While there was good news for South Africa in the pool, David Notoane’s U23 football side crashed out of the tournament with a heartbreaking 4-3 Group A defeat to France yesterday.
Despite taking the lead three times, they suffered a second loss in Japan to end their hopes ahead of their final pool game against Mexico.
Luther Singh crashed a first-half penalty onto the woodwork, before Kobamelo Kodisang grabbed a 53rd-minute opener after robbing Clement Michelin inside the area to fire into an open net.
But France hit back through 35-year-old captain Andre-Pierre Gignac just four minutes later when he held off SA counterpart Tercious Malepe to stab home at the near post.
Evidence Makpoga pounced in 73rd minute to give SA the lead with a near-post finish of his own from a Kodisang cross, Gignac headed France level five minutes later.
With six minutes left to play, Teboho Mokoena hammered SA into a 3-2 lead with a strike off the bottom of the crossbar, but SA goalkeeper Ronwen
Williams conceded an unfortunate penalty for Gignac to complete his hattrick to punish the U23s again.
Then in injury time, Teji Savanier’s cracker from the edge of the box to give France the lead for the first time and victory.
Meanwhile, SA’s pairs and four rowing teams both fell out at the repechage stages.
In the cycling road race, Ashleigh Moolman-Pasio finished 13th in the women’s race, while only one of the three men completed their event.
The men’s hockey team’s lie second from bottom in Group B after their 5-3 defeat to the Netherlands and are pointless after two losses.