Award-winning sports journalist Wouter Pienaar strives to capture the essence of sportspeople and their sport in his writing.

This 28-year-old sports fanatic obtained his BA Hons in Communication (Journalism) from the North-West University (NWU).

Wouter currently works as a sports journalist for the Potchefstroom Herald, a local newspaper in North West.

“My job entails all things sport. I write about sport in Potchefstroom, and cover a wide variety of individuals, topics and teams. I also take photographs and videos for my stories in this digitally stimulated world,” he says.

Wouter explains that the NWU played a major role in equipping him for the corporate world. His time at the university created a number of opportunities for him to meet new people and learn from his various fields of study. To this day he still remains in contact with lecturers who believed in him when he was a student. The university also gave him a passport to a career with a degree in his pocket.

Over the years he has given a number of journalists and photographers a run for their money. In 2016 he won the category for the best sports photograph at the Caxton Excellence Awards, and in 2018 he received the award as the best sports journalist at the Forum of Community Journalists Excellence Awards. “The years in which I did not walk away with an award I was a finalist,” he says.

He states that in the next five years he wants to be happy at a personal and professional level, and be able to work for a company or freelance so that he can use his full potential. If the opportunity presents itself, he also wants to own his own company and write a sports biography or two.