Kesa Molotsane says her appointment as the new Sports Manager for Athletics at KovsieSport is a win not just for her but for the community at large. All Photos: Supplied

Kesa Molotsane says her appointment as the new Sports Manager for Athletics at KovsieSport is a win – not just for her personally – but for the wider community she represents.

The accomplished runner-turned-administrator aims to elevate Athletics at Free State University to new heights. A familiar face on campus, she is also an alumna of the institution, having completed her studies there.

“The reason I am so invested in this position is because of the people that I serve and the community that I serve. We have been through a lot together, ever since working at this institution, even before that when I was still a student I was already committed to this office because I used to volunteer in this office when I was a student.”

KovsieSport Newly-Appointed Sports Manager for Athletics, Kesa Molotsane

“The goal was far bigger than what people would see, I have always had goals, and to see them come to fruition. I always know this institution at the top when it comes to athletics. Even back then we used to have Varsity athletics, and it was cut short for USSA purposes, I still wanted to see this office getting better each year. 

“This is the kind of commitment I have had for years, so for me, it’s not a win just for myself but rather it’s a win for the community at large. I think that many of them were concerned about who was taking over the office because they had seen the commitment that had been going into this office for a long time. 

“They are used to success from baselines and they were worried that someone who doesn’t understand the cultures, traditions, and everything else that has to do with this club,” says Molotsane. “It might be coming in and changing the whole process. The relief came when they announced my name.”

Molotsane brings a wealth of experience to her position as she has previously served as the Athletics Administrator and the Acting Sports Manager following the retirement of DP Prinsloo. This means she will bring her status as an elite athlete to make a lasting impact as she embarks on the next chapter of her career. 

She says being an athlete will give her the ability to empathise with the students, as she understands what it’s like having gone through similar struggles. 

“What is most important is that I was an athlete myself, I still am, so it makes it more visible and more effective if I can say it like that. Now I can put myself in the shoes of these kids and know the kind of pain that they go through daily,” says Molotsane. “I am delighted that I experienced, that so that I can avoid the same things happening, because most managers only understand the sports codes from the perspective of being a manager, or as someone in leadership.”

“If they did not play the sports themselves they would not understand the pain that these student athletes are going through. I think my experience will be much richer than most of the previous people in leadership who perhaps didn’t play the sport. The kind of advocacy they have is solving the problems or the challenges they have that these athletes are going through but actually, it’s on the surface of it all. So now can get down to where the challenges and problems are and I try to solve it from that angle.”

Molotsane is currently still an active athlete but since she has taken up her administrative and managerial positions she has had less time to focus on her running career. However, she feels that there is one thing that being an athlete has taught her and she is actively using it in the office. 

“It’s a cliche but most people would know that time management is a thing. As I stated being a manager is quite different because I could still crack and nail that when I was still an athlete administrator but now I have to relearn everything. Time isn’t on my side I just feel like 24 hours is not enough because I have so much to do. 

“So time management is a thing in sports and I have seen it in my career as a runner, you had to make sure that every single semi-split second counts. That is something that I brought into my leadership roles and my administration phase and coming now into the management phase. I also have to make sure that time is managed well.”

Despite staying close to the sport she loves, Molotsane admitted she does miss running. 

“I still try and find ways to have fun, but I think this year, things are happened so fast …! My previous manager went in retirement out of the blue, and it wasn’t expected, so I had to leave everything else and focus on that.”

“What I am doing is not just a passion for athletics – running is my whole life, this was a calling for me! I began running when I was five, and haven’t stopped running, so for me not to have so much time to run is getting to me now! You miss the running in the mornings and afternoons, but timing is not on my side, I try and get my runs whenever I can.”

“This is where you understand what it means to be an athlete, you don’t have as much time to run as you wanted to but I would celebrate it if I saw most of our student-athletes still participating and making sure they develop their sports in their own right, it won’t just be a win of them but for me as well and those who cannot be at the starting line.”

Varsity Sport has become a big player over the past few years and women’s sport has benefited from the exponential growth. Molotsane herself was a well-known varsity athlete and says this type of investment does create gender parity and she is also doing her bit to ensure women and girls pursue sport. 

“It will give women a bigger platform than what they have received in the past. That’s another thing that led me to open up a sanitary towel drive, I visit schools to advocate for education and sport in schools for young girls. To encourage them to be active and take care of their mental health.”

“In the university space, we also then try to get young women involved in sports, as well to grow the community. We know that many of them are challenged when it comes to their male counterparts, so I try to do what is in my power in the spaces that I am in to make sure we advocate and raise the bar higher for the girls to have a bigger stage to showcase what they can be.” 

“That is another motivation that I had been a part of the bigger structure of the Spar Women’s Grand Prix. I am an ambassador for the Johannesburg race, we also go out to advocate for women in sport to make sure that they also have a space to belong to.”

With an attitude like hers, Molotsane, a former Public Choice Award winner, on the gsport Awards stage, is sure to thrive in her position and inspire student athletes to give off their best. 


Main Photo Caption: Kesa Molotsane says her appointment as the new Sports Manager for Athletics at KovsieSport is a win not just for her but for the community at large. All Photos: Supplied

Photo 2 Caption: Having completed her studies at the University of the Free State, the well-known Kesa Molotsane has been tasked to help young athletes.

Photo 3 Caption: The popular runner has aspirations to take athletics to new heights at the Free State University.

Photo 4 Caption: Molotsane intends to leverage the exponential growth of women’s sport in the past year through avenues including Varsity Sport and the Spar 10km Series.

Photo 5 Caption: Knowing the challenges young women athletes face, Molotsane is keen to help to create champions in safe spaces they can trust

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