Latest news with #PrudenceSekgodiso
The Citizen
29-04-2025
- Sport
- The Citizen
OPINION: On the track, in the field and on the road, SA athletics is on the rise
At home and abroad, South African athletes were on fire last week. Middle-distance runners Prudence Sekgodiso and Charne Swart-Du Plessis after the women's 800m final at the SA Athletics Championships. Picture: Anton Geyser/Gallo Images We would have to turn the clock back a long way to recall a weekend of South African athletics as memorable as what we experienced last week. In Hamburg, 38-year-old Elroy Gelant shattered the national men's marathon record, clocking 2:05:36 to break the previous mark of 2:06:33 which was set by Gert Thys in Tokyo back in 1999. Gelant has been one of South Africa's top distance runners for more than a decade and it's fitting that he broke one of the longest standing records in the South African books. Meanwhile, in China, Akani Simbine opened his international outdoor season with a dominant victory in the men's 100m race at the first leg of the Diamond League series in China. Simbine clocked 9.99 seconds, thumping a strong field which included African record holder Ferdinand Omanyala, Olympic 200m champion Letsile Tebogo and American rocket Christian Coleman. The 31-year-old athlete is the most consistent sprinter on the planet, and maybe this will be the year he finally ends his bizarre drought by picking up a medal at a major global outdoor championship. SA Athletics Championships Back home, despite the absence of a handful of athletes who were competing at the Diamond League meeting, those who turned out at the national track and field championships in Potchefstroom produced the best edition of the domestic showpiece in some time. Zakithi Nene was the standout performer, clocking 44.22 seconds to win the men's 400m final. He climbed to second place in the all-time SA rankings over the distance behind world record holder Wayde van Niekerk, who ran 43.03 at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio. There was also a thrilling final in Potchefstroom in the men's 200m event, with Sinesipho Dambile (20.11), 17-year-old Naeem Jack (20.15) and Abduraqhmaan Karriem (20.15) all qualifying for the World Championships to be held in Tokyo in September. And fellow sprinter Gift Leotlela, who seemed to be dead and buried by a persistent injury, made a remarkable comeback, winning the men's 100m gold medal in 9.99. While Leotlela picked up a hamstring niggle in the 200m heats, his team didn't seem too concerned and hopefully he is able to reach the heights we know he is capable of reaching. Other highlights In the women's 800m final, world indoor champion Prudence Sekgodiso (1:58.80) was pushed all the way to the line by Charne Swart-Du Plessis (1:58.98) and both athletes will turn out at the global championships in Tokyo. There was also a magnificent medal treble by versatile thrower Colette Uys. Uys launched a massive 18.14m heave in the women's shot put final, falling just three centimetres short of the national record held by Ashley Erasmus (18.17m). She also won gold in the discus throw (57.94m) and silver in the hammer throw (65.53m). If this past weekend was anything to go by, the international season is going to be just as memorable. I can't even wait.
The Citizen
23-04-2025
- Sport
- The Citizen
Six athletes to watch at SA Athletics Championships
While some elite stars will be missing, as they focus on the opening leg of the Diamond League series, there should still be plenty of thrills on the track in Potchefstroom this week. Prudence Sekgodiso will compete in the 800m and 1 500m events at the SA Athletics Championships. Picture: Anton Geyser/Gallo Images Most of South Africa's top track and field athletes will converge on Potchefstroom over the next few days, as they chase national titles at the SA Athletics Championships. We take a look at six individuals to watch at the three-day domestic showpiece starting at Puk McArthur Stadium on Thursday. Bayanda Walaza The latest sensation in local athletics, after securing a relay silver medal at the Olympics and two gold medals at the World U20 Championships last year, 19-year Walaza will line up in the 100m and 200m sprints. He won't have to deal with SA 100m record holder Akani Simbine, who is competing at a Diamond League meeting in China this weekend, but he will face the likes of 400m world record holder Wayde van Niekerk and powerful speedster Benji Richardson over both distances. Bayanda Walaza (111) wins the 200m for men at the Grand Prix Series meeting at University of Johannesburg Athletics Stadium on March 19 this year. Picture: Christiaan Kotze/Gallo Images Prudence Sekgodiso Having won the world indoor 800m title in China last month, Olympic finalist Sekgodiso should have no trouble securing the national crown over the two-lap distance. She will have to be on her toes, however, against Charne Swart, who recently dipped under two minutes for the first time in her career at a meeting in Pretoria and should help ensure the pace is fast. Sekgodiso will also line up as the favourite in defence of her SA crown in the 1,500m event. Viwe Jingqi A few years ago, Jingqi became an overnight sensation when she shattered long-standing national youth and junior records in sprint events. Having struggled with injuries during her junior career, the 20-year-old speedster has recovered, but she has reached a plateau over the last couple of seasons. Having recently been stunned by 17-year-old Hannah Hope Vermaak at the Golden Grand Prix in Botswana, she should be eager to prove she is still SA's fastest woman in the 100m and 200m sprints. Viwe Jingqi, centre, wins the 100m race at the Grand Prix meeting at the University of Johannesburg on March 19 this year. Picture: Sydney Seshibedi/Gallo Images Tumi Ramokgopa It's rare for a young athlete to display the sort of immense talent possessed by Ramokgopa. In the absence of national record holder Marione Fourie, who is at this weekend's Diamond League meeting, the 17-year-old athlete will turn out as the favourite for the SA 100m hurdles title. After finishing third at last year's national championships, she will also hope to return to the podium in the 400m hurdles, though she is up against Olympic semifinalists Zeney Geldenhuys and Rogail Joseph. Njabulo Mbatha He is not as versatile as Ramokgopa, but 17-year-old Mbatha is showing similar levels of talent, and he might be the catalyst to resurrect South Africa's former glory in the men's 400m hurdles event. Last year he finished fourth in the one-lap final over the barriers at the World U20 Championships in Peru, and after setting a personal best of 49.06 seconds in Gaborone earlier this month, he will be difficult to beat in the race for the national senior title. Luvo Manyonga It's highly unlikely that Manyonga will reclaim the SA long jump title he last won in 2019, with the battle for podium places expected to be led by Cheswill Johnson, Jovan van Vuuren and Nikithemba Hani. Having been sidelined from the sport for four years, however, due to a recreational drug addiction, it is good to see 34-year-old Manyonga looking fit and healthy. He won't find his best form again, but the SA record holder has done well just to return to competitive action.
NBC Sports
23-03-2025
- Sport
- NBC Sports
Sekgodiso runs world-leading time to win 800m gold
Prudence Sekgodiso wins South Africa's first women's World Indoor medal, taking gold with a time of 1:58:40 in the 800m in Nanjing, China.
