A proud graduate of Wynberg Boys High School in his native Cape Town, South Africa, Daniel went on to study Journalism, before pursuing a Sport Science degree, with a Major in Physiology at Stellenbosch University, the top sports university in South Africa.
In addition to his PE and swimming instruction responsibilities at KIS, Mr Cairncross coaches The Barracudas, Kajonkiet’s elite swimming club who train six mornings a week.
An able swimmer, sailor, and surfer, Mr Cairncross loves pretty much all water-based sports and activities, especially water polo.
“I got into sailing from an early age, and over time gravitated to water polo, which was my main sport from about the age of 12 until 23,” he says.
For those who don’t know, water polo is a pool-based, seven-a-side team sport with a goal at each end of the pool, which must have an even-depth of no less than two metres.
Suffice to say, it requires lots of swimming and treading water since you can’t touch the ground or sides.
“It’s actually a very physical and ‘dirty’ sport, and you need to play with rolling substitutes,”Daniel notes, adding, “I’d like to get something going here in Thailand, as I haven’t seen much compared to Singapore and Malaysia, where they’ve really taken it up.”
Indeed, the physical strength and level of endurance built up from a life in the water has made Daniel an exceptional swimmer, and a complement to KIS’s swim department, alongside Mr
Kolthof (Early Years) and Mr Veltman (KS3 and KS4).
In addition to his Level 1 Swim Coach Certificate from South Africa, Mr Cairncross is also pursuing certification with Swim Australia.
Reflecting on his near-death experience, the 30-year-old South African recounts, “Prior to coming here, I had just finished my final uni exam and was a surf instructor in Cape Town, which I had been for about a year up to that point.”
But that came to an abrupt end one day when he was out in the water being towed by a boat, coming into a bay from the sea, where a shark warning had just been issued.
“I got pulled into the boat just in the nick of time, another metre and I would have been shark food,” he laughs.
Five weeks after that, he decided on a change of scenery and took up an invitation from a friend in Phuket, where there are no known man-eating sharks, yet still a dire need for water and swim
instructors.
After all, we do live on an island where unnecessary drownings are all too common.
When he’s not teaching swimming at KIS, Daniel actively enjoys the water. He catches as many waves as he can during the short surf season, and occasionally goes out for a sail in the Phang-nga Bay.
“I’ve recently taken up wakeboarding, bought a new wakeboard and moved near to the park here in Kathu,” he reveals.
But it’s not only water-based sports Daniel enjoys. He is also a proud member of Phuket’s rugby outfit, the Vagabonds, and has been seen joining a football pick-up match with parents and teachers.
In closing, Mr Cairncross extends an invitation for The Barracudas.“We’re always looking for new talent. We train Monday through Friday for 75 minute sessions before school, in addition to two hours on Saturday mornings. Any student from KIS or at any of the other Kajonkiet schools on the
island is welcome to request a tryout.”
To get in touch about The Barracudas or KIS’ swim programme, please contact ip@kajonkietsuksa.ac.th