Gold Reef Rhythmic Gymnastics Club was established in 1990 by Maureen van Rooyen.
It was the first Rhythmic Gymnastics Club to open it's doors in South Africa.
Maureen and Isabel van Achterbergh, her lecturer at the Teachers Training College started to develop the sport to the Olympic standard which it is today. Maureen studied at Goudstad Teachers Training College, and taught at Blairgowrie High School for just under 5 years, where she started working with her Phys Ed students on many projects.
They loved doing Rhythmic Gymnastics and the sport started to grow from there. Maureen took unpaid leave from the Education Department and went to Germany for 4 months where she trained in a Rhythmic Gymnastics club, under the auspices of Frau Miesen, a Bulgarian coach . On her return she left teaching and started developing the sport of Rhythmic Gymnastics throughout the country.
Today Rhythmic Gymnastics is a fully accredited sport in South Africa. Maureen has travelled the World to Internaional Rhythmic Competitions, and is probably the most experienced coach in Southern Africa.
She is also at present the Chairlady for Rhythmic Gymnastics South Africa. She has represented South Africa at all the African Championships and have been to the Commonwealth Games three times. She is the only coach of South Africa to have ever been to the Olympic Games coaching Stephanie Sandler in 2004 in Athens and Odette Richard in 2008 in Beijing. She has been to many World Championships and twice to the Student Games.
The Olympics was her dream and goal and came true through hard work and absolute dedication.
She truly has a passion for the Sport and would like to make Rhythmic Gymnastics even bigger in South Africa.