gsport Award Prabashnee Naidoo holds her gsport Awards 2026 Supporter of the Year trophy, an honour she regards not simply as personal recognition, but as a platform to use her voice to bring greater visibility to volleyball and recognise other women in the sport.
Fresh off her triumph at the 2026 gSport Awards, where she was named Supporter of the Year, Stanger resident Prabashnee “Bashi” Naidoo is capitalizing on her national recognition to spearhead a bold campaign for South African volleyball.The prestigious award caps off an extraordinary 12 months for the 48-year-old athlete, following her historic silver medal win at the 2025 World Masters Games in Taipei.
Now, Naidoo is using her growing public platform to drag volleyball out of the shadows, shatter the myth that it is merely a recreational pastime, and demand serious investment for the sport."When I looked at that trophy, I wasn’t just seeing an award," Naidoo said. "I was seeing recognition of a journey — and a reminder of what happens when someone says, 'I recognize her.' gSport didn’t just give me an award.
It gave me a platform, a network and, most importantly, a sense of belonging."Naidoo’s crusade for visibility is deeply tied to her performance on the international stage. Competing in Taiwan as part of Linkfields T12 Ladies Masters, her team made history as the first female indoor volleyball side from Africa to compete at the World Masters Games.
