# Meiring's formula fuels Coetzé's rise

> Coach Rocco Meiring's simple approach helped 22-year-old Pieter Coetzé claim ten medals and a world record at the Swimming World Cup.
- Title: Meiring's formula fuels Coetzé's rise · Daily Maverick
- Summary: Coach Rocco Meiring's simple approach helped 22-year-old Pieter Coetzé claim ten medals and a world record at the Swimming World Cup. Pieter Coetzé won ten…
- Keywords: pieter coetzé, rocco meiring, swimming world cup, backstroke, world record, south africa, tuks, commonwealth games, los angeles 2028 olympics, news, politics, Meiring's
- Source: Daily Maverick — https://dailymaverick.co.za/article/2026-10-26-coach-rocco-meirings-formula-fuels-swimmer-pieter-coetzes-rise
- Author: Annemieke Thomaidis
- Published: 2026-10-26T10:21:30+00:00
- Read time: 2 min
- Topics: pieter coetzé, rocco meiring, swimming world cup, backstroke, world record, south africa, tuks, commonwealth games, los angeles 2028 olympics, news, politics
## World Cup dominance
Pieter Coetzé won ten medals at the Swimming World Cup, which concluded on seventeen October, finishing first in the overall standings of the three-leg tournament.
## Record-breaking swim
On nine October, Coetzé broke the fifty metre backstroke world record, swimming twenty-two point zero nine seconds in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, eclipsing Russian Kliment Kolesnikov's record of twenty-two point one one set in two thousand twenty-two.
## Triple Crown wins
Coetzé claimed two Triple Crowns, meaning he won gold in both the one hundred metre and two hundred metre backstroke in all three legs of the World Cup.
## Coetzé's reflection
After winning the World Cup title, Coetzé said the achievement required three weeks of consistent focus and hard work, making it probably the hardest he had worked for any achievement.

> I'll cherish this one forever. This one is hard work because it's three weeks that you keep it consistent and stay focused.
## Meiring's initial hesitation
Coach Rocco Meiring thought the World Cup might prove disruptive to their training schedule, coming between the Commonwealth Games and the World Aquatics Swimming Championships in December.
## Coetzé's insistence paid off
Coetzé insisted on competing despite Meiring's concerns. Meiring later admitted the decision was the right one, as Coetzé dominated the competition.
## Early Olympic dream
Coetzé became South Africa's youngest swimmer to compete at the two thousand twenty-one Tokyo Olympics after his debut. He failed to progress beyond the heats but refused to abandon his Olympic goal.
## Paris Olympics breakthrough
At the two thousand twenty-four Paris Olympics, Coetzé made the finals for the one hundred metre and two hundred metre backstroke events, finishing fifth and seventh respectively, exposing areas for improvement in his underwater work.
## Disappointment to determination
Coetzé returned from Paris bitterly disappointed and despondent. However, the disappointment shifted to renewed determination as he took ownership of the work required to reach the next level.
## Meiring's coaching philosophy
Meiring has coached at the University of Pretoria since nineteen ninety-nine. He emphasises the basics, hard work and keeping athletes in a balanced, normal environment rather than a sterile, elitist one.

> We're a work-based programme. We're very basic, very unsophisticated. We just put the work in, keep it simple.
## Commonwealth Games success
Coetzé won three individual backstroke gold medals at the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, setting a Games record in each event under Meiring's tutelage.
## Next target: Los Angeles
After his World Cup success, Coetzé and Meiring shift focus to the Swimming Championships in December, with the longer-term ambition to arrive at the Los Angeles two thousand twenty-eight Olympics ready to challenge for a…
## Key takeaway

Pieter Coetzé won ten medals and broke the fifty metre backstroke world record at the Swimming World Cup under coach Rocco Meiring's basic, work-focused training approach.