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Maputo - As amputee swimmer Natalie du Toit enters the twilight of her career, she feels she still has some unfulfilled goals.
Du Toit was slightly emotional as she took to the pool in her final All Africa Games in Maputo, Mozambique, late on Thursday.
"I think it is emotional as I have given up quite a lot to be where I am today," Du Toit said.
"It has been tough and it has been a hard road and I don't think too many people understand all that has gone into it."
The 27-year-old South African said, despite many years of competing at the highest level, it was still an honour to represent her country.
"The All Africa Games is an opportunity to take part and represent our country," she said.
"The country has been behind me since my accident and before my accident, and I have to say thank you to them."
Du Toit, already an accomplished teenage swimmer, had her left leg amputated at the knee after she was involved in a motor vehicle accident in 2001.
Three years later, at the Paralympic Games in Athens, Du Toit won five gold medals and one silver.
She went on to bag another five golds at the 2008 Beijing Paralympics.
Du Toit hit the international spotlight when she qualified for the able-bodied Olympic Games in May 2008 at the Open Water World Championships in Seville, Spain, after she finished fourth in the women's 10km race.
Later that year she became the first female amputee to participate at the Olympics.
Du Toit, however, was disappointed with her maiden Olympic performance, finishing 16th of 24 swimmers in the 10km event in Beijing.
With next year's London Olympics providing her last chance to compete at the able-bodied global sporting showpiece, Du Toit said she hoped to put up a stronger performance in the English capital.
"To a degree I haven't achieved a lot of what I wanted to achieve," she said.
"I will try to better my 16th place at the Olympics in the 10km and then I'm going all out in seven Paralympic events."
Du Toit has struggled with her form this season, finishing in a lowly 39th place in the 10km open water event at the Fina World Championships in Shanghai, China, in July.
She will, however, have a final chance of qualifying for the 2012 London Olympics at an open water qualifying competition in Setubal, Portugal, in June next year.
"I struggled a bit in China for many reasons, but Portugal would be my last time to qualify for the Olympics, so we'll see how it goes in the 10km."
Du Toit will add the 100m breaststroke and backstroke disciplines to her repertoir at the London Paralympics as she looks to retire with a bang.
"At the end of the day I want to go out on a good note," she said.
"That is what is so emotional - trying to compete and trying to get better and better still."
