## 1 Introduction  
The current expansion of the human population is increasing the global demand for meat [1]; however, increasing meat production faces a number of challenges, including limited land availability, livestock feed supply, and climate change. Thus, domesticated livestock species alone may not be capable of meeting the expanding demand for animal protein, and therefore additional underutilized sources should be investigated [2, 3]. While beef cattle are particularly vulnerable to desertification and bush encroachment brought on by climate change [4], antelope, in comparison, are well adapted to arid African environments, as they may utilize low-quality vegetation and are less susceptible to overgrazing [5]. Therefore, African antelope species represent a practical solution to increasing lean meat production, with promising results already reported for species such as the common el (Taurotragus oryx) [6; 7; 8; 9]. With the expansion of the South African game industry and the intensification of production systems for controlled breeding, more animals are available to be culled for meat production [10]. The meat of impala antelope (_Aepyceros melampus_) produces high carcass yields and dressing percentages, with meat that is high in protein and low in intramuscular fat [11], which makes it an attractive alternative protein source to traditional livestock for meat production [12; 13]. However, game meat is considered as tough and dry by consumers, due to low product uniformity in commercially available game meat, as well as a lack of quality standards and knowledge on the proper cooking methods for game meat [14].  
However, perceived meat quality is influenced by an array of ante and _post-mortem_ factors, including species, age, sex, environmental and dietary factors, slaughtering conditions, and _post-mortem_ processing of the meat [15]. Sex had minor influences on the meat production potential and physiochemical meat quality parameters of impala [11], but to develop the consumer market for game meat, supply chains must be capable of supplying products with consistently high-quality standards [16], in addition to improving consumer perception concerning the toughness of game meat. It is therefore necessary to investigate methods that may improve the texture and quality of meat from game species, of which wet-ageing has shown potential in other antelope species [8; 9; 17]. _Post-mortem_ ageing not only improves the tenderness of meat through changes in the micro- and ultrastructure of muscle fibers [18], but it also influences other meat quality attributes such as juiciness, aroma, and flavor [19; 20]. Currently, wet-ageing is favored commercially [21], whereby meat is vacuum packaged and stored under refrigerated conditions. The reason for this being that moisture loss and shrinkage during ageing is decreased, and wet-ageing provides a higher convenience during transport and storage of the meat [22; 23].  
While the fresh meat quality of impala indicates that their meat may be considered as tender after 24 h _post-mortem_[11], ageing may not only further benefit tenderness, but also the sensory eating quality and transportation of meat from isolated production areas to commercial sale points. However, the influence of _post-mortem_ ageing on the meat quality of impala has not yet been investigated. Thus, the aim of this study was to determine the optimum _post-mortem_ ageing period, based primarily on tenderness and color, of the _longissimus thoracis et lumborum_ (LTL) muscle of impala meat from both sexes.