At St Michael’s we offer a variety of sport disciplines: chess, athletics, hockey, netball, tennis, swimming, squash, and cross country.
At our school, sport thrives. Our world class water based hockey astro, one of only four in Bloemfontein, sets the stage for excellence. Learners train and compete on premium facilities, including four squash courts, six tennis courts, four senior netball courts, two junior netball courts, and a pristine swimming pool. With athletics and cross country rounding off our programme, we offer every learner the space to grow, compete, and shine.
2 x grass hockey fields in impeccable condition
1 x 25m swimming pool
3 x first-class squash courts
4 x newly resurfaced netball courts
6 x newly resurfaced tennis courts
We are proud to be able to provide our learners with these excellent facilities.
Chess is the gymnasium for the brain. It has been proven that playing chess can improve academic excellence in core subjects like mathematics and even languages. Junior chess is coached weekly to the girls. Each session has between 20 to 40 excited girls.
Chess is made to be a fun activity where they can interact with friends and learn from their peers, under the supervision of a coach who makes sure the proper rules are followed. This method helps them to build social skills and discipline as well.
Our Junior School chess coach is a young lady by the name of Susan Nel, who also started playing chess in primary school and went on to represent South Africa at chess championships in France and Vietnam. She is a full time student and enjoys teaching and promoting chess, especially to girls.
The senior girls take part in the Bloemfontein Chess League, which starts in the second term, and also play in other tournaments throughout the year.
Our High School coach, Angie de Wet, also has SA colours and both coaches are qualified arbiters.
We urge learners to come and join. Beginners are welcome!
St Michael’s has a number of learners in the Junior and Senior school that excel in athletics and who take part in different athletics competitions. Our annual Inter House Athletics Day is always great fun for our learners, teachers, and parents.
At St Michael’s School for Girls, we offer various athletic disciplines:
Cross country running is a sport in which teams and individuals run a race on open air courses over natural terrain.
Cross country takes place in the 2nd & 3rd terms at the University of the Free State’s cross country track. The track is a 2km loop, and distances vary with different age groups.
The most common distance is 4km, which is run from the U/13 level. There are 6 leagues, and Southern Free State and Free State teams are chosen based on the number of leagues run as well as performance on Championship days.
St Michael’s prides itself on having strong, competitive hockey teams.
Our fighting spirit and sky blue uniform stand out at league matches, as well as hockey clinics. We play hockey throughout the year at St Michael’s to the benefit of our learners. The juniors have league matches during the 3rd term of school, and the seniors during terms 2 and 3. All age groups play in festivals and tournaments to prepare for the leagues.
Our Juniors as well as Seniors take part in the annual All Girls Festivals. For the juniors, we have two six-a-side festivals a year, when we host Free State schools for a fun festival on a Saturday.
Netball has, over the years, gained popularity at St Michael’s School for Girls. Concentrating on enhancing netball skills. Our enthusiastic and energetic coaches participated in netball courses and dedicated themselves to nurturing our future Protea stars.
In 2022, we resumed competitive netball. We have two teams in each category from Grade 1 to Grade 7. Our U/13A team participated in the ITEC Tournament and the All Girls Festival in East London, where they performed remarkably well. Our other grades are also quite active, engaging in league matches and netball festivals. The girls in Grades 1 to 3 are competing in mini netball festivals, proudly representing St Michael’s!
The squash programme at SMS is expanding and gaining popularity each year. Currently, we have around 45 learners engaged in both competitive and social squash.
At the end of the year, we organise our own SMS tournament and also take part in various competitions like the Southern Free State, Bloem Open, Free State Closed, Country Districts, and IPT tournaments.
Additionally, we field teams in the Ladies and Winter League, where our girls compete against schools and clubs in Bloemfontein.
At SMS, we have three squash courts available. Coaching sessions are held in the afternoons, led by our teachers as well as some of the top external coaches.
Swimming is available as an extracurricular activity for all girls from Grade 3 to Grade 12. At SMS, we promote participation among our learners.
For Grade 1 and 2 girls, swimming is mandatory. Our goal is to make sure that all our girls are safe in the water.
Each year, we have girls and even staff members who join the Midmar Mile. We also take part in the annual Inter Primary gala and the Inter High.
St Michael’s is fortunate to have six newly resurfaced all weather tennis courts. The players range from beginners to league players. They are divided into beginner, average and team players. “Play and Stay” is offered to the Pre Primary and Foundation Phase learners.
Qualified, professional coaches are employed to coach our Junior and Senior teams.
The team players compete in the Bloemfontein Schools League The Junior Team participates in the All Girls Festival and the Senior Team participates in the De Aar and Zastron Festivals.
Choosing the correct school for your daughter is always a difficult yet important decision. Let us help you make that decision easier. With an academic track record that speaks for itself, St Michael’s School for Girls should be at the top of your list.
