From Gymnastics To Social Impact

Raedene Lucas is a 2019 activator from Cape Town, Western Cape, is using her passion and experience in education and sports to create opportunities for inclusion for young people. She is an accomplished contributor to community development and has a story to tell.

From Gymnastics To Social Impact

Raedene’s journey in sport started long before she understood that sport could become a career. She spent 10 years as a high-performance artistic gymnast, representing the Western Cape, and that experience taught her discipline, resilience, commitment and the importance of having people who believe in her.

Academically, she pursued a BA in Sport, Recreation and Exercise Science at the University of the Western Cape, followed by a Postgraduate Diploma in Sport for Development and Peace and Masters with postgraduate research in the field specifically relating to inclusion for persons with disabilities in sport. Along the way, she also qualified in sports massage and developed an interest in injury prevention and athlete recovery.

What really shaped her direction, though, was discovering that sport is about much more than competition. Sport can educate, create opportunities, build confidence, bring communities together and address inequalities. That led her towards sport for development, youth development, Olympic education and inclusion.

Today, her work sits at the intersection of sport, education, research, youth development and social impact. She has worked in research and as a facilitator, lectured in areas including exercise physiology, sports massage and sport for people with disabilities, and founded Raecovery, which focuses on injury prevention and recovery. She has also served in youth leadership roles within the Foundation for Sport, Development and Peace and the Youth Network for Sport, Development and Peace as the Youth Coordinator and Chairperson.

At the heart of it all Raedene asks this one question: How can we use sport to create better opportunities and better lives for people?

Navigating A Male Dominated Sporting Environment

Being a woman in sport has taught her that sometimes you have to be comfortable entering spaces where you may not immediately see many people who look like you. Sport can still be very male dominated, particularly when one moves beyond participation and into leadership, research, decision-making and the business side of sport. One of the biggest lessons for her has been understanding that she does not need to constantly prove that she belongs. She has learned to let her work, her preparation and the value she brings speak for her.

There has also been challenges around balancing different identities — being an athlete, an academic, an entrepreneur, a researcher, a leader and, ultimately, a person still figuring things out. There can be an expectation that women have to excel in every space simultaneously.

She thinks the challenge is not simply getting women into sport. It is making sure women are seen, heard, trusted and given opportunities to lead once they are there.

Raedene has overcame these challenges by focusing less on trying to fit into spaces and more on understanding what she could contribute to those spaces.

Education played a huge role in that. The more she learned, the more confident she became in her voice and her expertise. Her sporting background gave her resilience, while academia taught her to question, research and think critically. Leadership and entrepreneurship taught her to take initiative rather than waiting for permission.

She has also learned the importance of community. She has been fortunate to have mentors, colleagues, family members and people who opened doors for her. She believes strongly in the idea that people do not succeed alone.

And sometimes overcoming a challenge simply means continuing. There have been moments when she didn’t have all the answers or couldn’t see the bigger picture, but she kept moving. One piece of advice she has carried with her is: “This too shall pass.” Whether you’re going through a difficult season or an exciting one, nothing stays the same forever.

Staying Grounded Despite Achievements  

For Lucas, it comes back to people.

Her greatest inspiration has always been her mother. Growing up, watching her raise four children as a single mother showed her what strength, independence and perseverance look like. Her mother created opportunities for her, and a lot of what Raedene has achieved is built on the foundation she was given by her mother.

She also reminds herself that titles and awards are temporary. What matters to her is the impact one has on people and the opportunities you create for those coming behind you.

She is particularly conscious of the young people watching what she does. If her journey can make someone else believe that they can pursue sport, education, leadership or any combination of those things, then that means more to her than a title ever could.

For Raedene, there are several achievements she is proud of and they represent different chapters of her journey.

Academically, being recognised on the Dean’s Merit List as a top achiever in the Faculty of Community and Health Sciences was incredibly meaningful. Being recognised by Golden Key was also an important milestone.

Being named one of the Top 100 Brightest Young Minds in Africa and later being recognised among the Mail & Guardian Top 200 Young South Africans in the Sport category were also significant moments because they recognised not only academic achievement, but the broader social impact of her work.

She is also proud of founding Raecovery and creating something that connects her knowledge of sport science with practical support for athletes.

But perhaps what she is most proud of is the opportunity to contribute to young people’s development through sport and education. Whether that is facilitating Olympic values education, contributing to research, teaching, mentoring or creating platforms for young people to participate, those are the things that make the journey worthwhile.

Sports And Education Complementing Each Other

Raedene does not see sport and education as separate worlds. Instead, she sees them as two sides of the same developmental process.

Sport teaches lessons that are difficult to learn from a textbook such as discipline, teamwork, resilience, leadership, dealing with failure, communication and accountability. Education gives you the tools to understand those experiences, question them and apply what you learn beyond the sporting environment.

That is particularly important in South Africa. Sport can be a powerful vehicle for creating access and addressing inequality, while education can provide the knowledge and critical thinking needed to make those sporting opportunities sustainable and meaningful. Her own work has been shaped by the belief in levelling the playing field and creating equal access to opportunities.

Ultimately, she wants young people to leave a sporting environment with more than medals. She wants them to leave with skills, confidence, values and a belief in what they can contribute to society.

Success

Success has become much less about titles and much more about impact, purpose and alignment.

Earlier in Raedene’s career, success was perhaps about achieving the next qualification, winning the next opportunity or reaching the next milestone. Those things are still important, but her definition has evolved.

Today, success means being able to wake up and know that what she is doing has meaning. It means continuing to learn, creating opportunities for others, doing work that contributes to something bigger than herself and being able to look back and know that she used the opportunities she was given well.

She also thinks success is being able to remain curious. She doesn’t want to arrive at a point where she thinks she knows everything. She wants to keep learning, keep asking questions and keep growing.

For her, success is not simply how far she can go; it is how many people are able to go further because she was there.

Raeden’s message to young women would be: don’t wait until you feel completely ready.

You will often feel underqualified, inexperienced or uncertain before you step into your next opportunity. That’s normal. Growth happens when you are willing to enter the room, learn, ask questions and take responsibility.

Understand who you are and what your strengths are. Your journey does not have to look like anybody else’s. You can be an athlete and an academic. You can be a researcher and an entrepreneur. You can be a leader while still learning. You don’t have to choose one identity.

And most importantly, don’t measure your success only by what you achieve for yourself. Think about what doors you can open for someone else.

She would remind every young woman that they deserve to be in the room, but that they also have the responsibility to help make that room bigger for the women coming after them.

There will be difficult seasons. There will be rejection. There will be moments when you question yourself. Keep going. Learn from them, surround yourself with people who believe in your potential, and remember that your current circumstances don’t determine the size of your future.

As she has learnt throughout her own journey: “This too shall pass.” Keep moving, keep learning and keep using your gifts to make an impact.

“Sport gave me the discipline, academia gave me the knowledge, and service gave me the purpose.”- Raedene Lucas, 2026.

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About the author: 

Londiwe Mnguni is an activated young person passionate about community development and social change, with a deep commitment to contributing meaningfully to initiatives that empower and uplift communities.