Latest news with #WorldRelays
IOL News
20-07-2025
- Sport
- IOL News
Marlie Viljoen defends World University Games 400m title with new lease of life
Marlie Viljoen is back from injury and focused on defending her 400m title at the World University Games in Germany. Image: Reg Caldecott Marlie Viljoen felt like her world had come crashing down during a recent injury-enforced spell on the sidelines. As she gears up to defend her 400m title at the FISU World University Games in Rhine-Ruhr, Germany, on Monday, she realises it may have been a blessing in disguise. In March, the Tuks student was in high spirits after setting a personal best of 51.42 seconds in the 400m. She was convinced she was capable of even faster times. It didn't happen; within days, every step she took on the track was accompanied by pain. It became unbearable after a race in Botswana, so she went to the doctor. A scan revealed she had suffered a stress fracture. For three weeks, she had to get by on crutches. Crippling blow 'It was as if my world had come crashing down. I was in the best shape of my life, but now I couldn't participate in the South African Championships or the national student meet,' the South African one-lap star said. 'The worst thing was that I had to withdraw from the World Relays after being a member of the 4x400m team that had broken the South African record. 'I almost gave in to total self-pity. Sitting in the stands watching the women's 400m finals at the national championships was agonising. I should have been on the track racing. 'Luckily I realised that feeling sorry for myself wouldn't get me anywhere. I began doing my rehabilitation exercises with dedication. I worked out at the gym, using weights, rowing, the treadmill, cycling, and swimming. "The one thing I missed was not being able to run. It made me realise that I was truly an athlete. Running is my passion, and if my body allows me, I will continue to run for some time to come.' Video Player is loading. Play Video Play Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration -:- Loaded : 0% Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Window Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Dropshadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Advertisement Next Stay Close ✕ Ad loading Back on track Last weekend in Italy, Viljoen ran the 400m for the first time in three months. She finished fifth, in a time of 53.03. 'The injury could be a blessing in disguise. If I hadn't been injured, I would not have put so much pressure on myself to defend the world student title and run even faster times. "I am more open-minded now. My only goal is to be the best I can in every race. 'Everyone knows that in the final, anything can happen. Hopefully, I can make South Africans proud again. In the end, all that really matters is knowing that I gave it my all.'
TimesLIVE
18-07-2025
- Sport
- TimesLIVE
Akani Simbine, Zakithi Nene set for Diamond League return in London
Relay sprint stars Akani Simbine and Zakithi Nene return to Diamond League action in London on Saturday as they step up their preparation for the world championships in Tokyo in September. The duo, who anchored the South African men's 4x100m and 4x400m teams to gold at World Relays in China in May, have spent more than the past month in training, away from competition. Simbine, winner of the 60m bronze at the world indoor championships in March, has gone unbeaten over 100m so far this season with six wins out of six. But he'll do well to make it seven on Saturday when he goes up against Olympic 100m and 200m champions, American Noah Lyles and Letsile Tebogo of Botswana. At this meet last year Simbine finished second behind Lyles — but ahead of Tebogo — while dipping under 9.90sec for the second time in his career. The South African speedster achieved that two more times during the Paris Olympics the next month, lowering his national mark to 9.82 while finishing fourth in the final. Also in the line-up are Jamaicans Oblique Seville and Ackeem Blake as well as the British trio of Zharnel Hughes, world indoor champion Jeremiah Azu and Louie Hinchliffe, all members of the relay outfit that took bronze behind South Africa in Paris. Nene, who has notched up two second places in Diamond League meets this year as well as a victory in Nairobi, faces five Olympic medallists as well as Zambian Commonwealth Games 400m champion Muzala Samukonga. Vernon Norwood was part of the victorious US 4x400m ensemble in France, with Bayapo Ndori and Busang Kebinatshipi competing for runners-up Botswana. Olympic 400m silver medallist Matthew Hudson-Smith and Charlie Dobson ran for the third-placed British team. But Nene owns the fastest season's best in the field, courtesy of the 43.76 he clocked in Kenya. The meeting will be broadcast on SuperSport channel 208 from 3pm.
Time of India
18-06-2025
- Sport
- Time of India
Quarter-miler Arokia retires, to open academy in hometown
CHENNAI: Asian Games medallist and two-time Olympian Arokia Rajiv has decided to hang up his boots. The quarter-miler from has represented India for over a decade and has achieved considerable success. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now 'After careful consideration, I have decided to retire. For nearly 15 years, I have not been able to spend quality time with my family, and now I want to focus on taking care of my kids. I am going to pursue a diploma in coaching in Patiala and later I am planning to open an academy in my hometown in Lalgudi (Trichy),' Arokia told TOI on Tuesday. The most memorable moment for Arokia was winning bronze at the 2014 Asian Games. Despite having injury concerns he went on to clinch a medal and it also turned out to be a breakthrough moment for him. 'I cannot forget the 2014 Asian Games. No one expected me to win a medal as I was injured. Many asked me not to compete but after a lot of struggles I participated and succeeded. People started to recognise me from that time,' Arokia added. When Arokia won a medal, India broke the 16-year drought in 400m at the Asian Games. India had last won in 1998. 'Overall, it was a memorable journey, but one drawback would be that I could not bag a medal in the Olympics. But when I look back at my journey, I have a lot of good memories. I am currently nursing an injury, and it will take me six months to recover.' Last year, the 34-year-old was instrumental in helping India's 4x400m men's relay team qualify for the Olympics at the World Relays in the Bahamas. India failed to finish the race in the heats after Rajesh Ramesh suffered a hamstring injury. The team had one final chance to qualify in the second qualifying round, and Arokia, who was nursing an injury himself, was drafted into the quartet. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now He ran the third leg and helped India finish in the top-two, securing a ticket to the Paris Games. 'Initially qualifying for the Olympics was a huge task. In 2012, the Indian relay team found it tough to breach the 'B' qualification mark but this is not the case now.' Arokia's goal is to set up an academy and help athletes from humble backgrounds achieve their dreams. 'We do not have a proper ground in my village and it would be great if the state government helps me.'
TimesLIVE
15-06-2025
- Sport
- TimesLIVE
Prudence Sekgodiso fights hard and smart for third place in Stockholm
World indoor champion Prudence Sekgodiso fought hard and smart to finish third in a competitive 800m race at the Diamond League meet in Stockholm on Sunday in which Olympic champion Jemma Reekie of Britain finished behind her. Kenya's 2023 world champion Mary Moraa turned this into a tactical contest as she slowed down up front early on, letting the pacemaker go ahead, but Sekgodiso kept her head and when Reekie attacked at the end of the first lap, the 23-year-old went with her. Moraa pressed again on the back straight, but Sekgodiso pushed back to stay in touch with the leaders and when they came off the final bend it was a three-way race between the Pretoria runner, Moraa and Briton Georgia Hunter Bell, the Olympic 1,500m bronze medallist. Hunter Bell won in 1min 57.66sec with Moraa second in 1:57.83 and Sekgodiso third in 1:58.00. Audrey Werro of Switzerland was fourth in 1:58.35 and Reekie fifth in 1:58.66. Bradley Nkoana, a member of the South African 4x100m relay teams that won the 2024 Olympic silver and 2024 World Relays gold, finished second in the 100m in 10.23, five-hundredths of a second behind Benjamin Azamati of Ghana. Gift Leotlela, the South African champion over the distance, was disqualified for a false start. Abduraqhman Karriem had to overcome two recalls in the men's 200m, one for crowd noise and the other for a false start by Canadian Olympic gold medallist Aaron Brown. But when the race got under way after the third firing of the start gun, Karriem produced a great start, coming off the bend in contention, but then started tiring to finish fifth in 20.52, well short of his 20.15 personal best.
Irish Independent
14-06-2025
- Sport
- Irish Independent
‘I'll build on this race' – Rhasidat Adeleke finishes fourth in Bislett Games 400m at Diamond League meeting in Oslo
It was Adeleke's first race at her specialist distance since last September, having raced over 200m earlier this season along with a couple of 4x400m legs at last month's World Relays in China. Drawn in lane six, she got off to a steady start but began to move through the field after halfway, challenging for second as she came off the final bend. But as it was in some key races last year, Adeleke tied up slightly over the final 50 metres, fading to fourth, with USA's Isabella Whittaker taking victory in 49.58 ahead of Norway's Henriette Jaeger (49.62) and Britain's Amber Anning (50.24). Dutch athlete Lieke Klaver was just behind Adeleke in 50.64, with Olympic bronze medallist and European champion Natalia Bukowiecka sixth in 50.67. 'It's my first 400, I'm trying to adjust in terms of that,' said Adeleke. 'Me and my coach have been working on something different so we're just trying to get going, get the season going. The main goal is September so we're working towards that. Adeleke will be back in action over 400m at the Stockholm Diamond League on Sunday. 'I'll build on this race,' she said. 'Each race I'm building up to make it to where I need to be.' Mark English was also in action in Oslo, the 32-year-old coming home seventh in the 800m, clocking 1:44.33. English, who broke the Irish 800m record on Monday night with 1:43.92 in Hengelo, was on track shortly after for a loaded 800m race that featured four Olympic finalists, and two medallists, from the Paris Games. He kept contact with the field for much of the race but didn't have the gears to go with the world's best over the last 200m, the Donegal athlete finishing seventh in the second fastest time of his career, 1:44.33. The race was won by Olympic champion Emmanuel Wanyonyi of Kenya in 1:42.78. 'I would have liked a bit quicker,' said English. 'But it's a lot of races in a short space of time so that's probably the reason I wasn't able to run 1:43 today. It's hard to do it in every race.' Meanwhile Grand Slam Track, the upstart league co-founded by Michael Johnson, has cancelled its fourth and final meeting of the 2025 season. Johnson called an emergency meeting with athletes and managers on Thursday night to inform them that the final event in Los Angeles on 28-29 June will not go ahead. It's understood the chief reason for the cancellation is financial, with organisers keen to avoid further losses after the league struggled to attract big attendances and TV viewing figures for its first three events. Its inaugural meeting in Kingston, Jamaica played out in front of mostly empty stands, while things improved at the second meeting in Miami and were better again at the third meeting in Philadelphia, where around 30,000 tickets were sold across the two-day event. Organisers plan to return for a second season in 2026 and are expected to announce new investors and partners in the coming weeks. Grand Slam Track said it would award over $12 million in prize money during its first season, with Johnson securing $30 million in investment to get the league off the ground. First-placed prize money stood at $100,000 in each category, with $50,000 for second and $10,000 for eighth. Andrew Coscoran and Sharlene Mawdsley both featured in its first season, with Coscoran earning $50,000 for his runner-up finish in the long-distance category in Miami and $12,500 for his fourth-place finish over 3000m in Philadelphia. Mawdsley earned $15,000 for her sixth-place finish in the long sprints category at the latter event. Elsewhere, Athletics Ireland has announced a 46-strong Irish team for the European Athletics Team Championships, which take place in Maribor, Slovenia on 28-29 June. Ireland will contest the second division against 15 other nations, with the top three teams promoted to the first division and the bottom three relegated. Mawdsley is among the star names on the team alongside fellow Olympians such as Sarah Lavin, Sophie Becker, Cillín Greene, Brian Fay, Eric Favors, Sophie O'Sullivan and Nicola Tuthill. Irish squad for European Team Championships Women Lucy-May Sleeman (100m, 4x100m), Lauren Roy (200m, 4x100m), Sophie Becker (400m, mixed 4x400m), Sophie O'Sullivan (800m), Laura Nicholson (1500m), Róisín Flanagan (5000m), Sarah Lavin (100m hurdles, 4x100m), Arlene Crossan (400m hurdles, mixed 4x400m), Ava O'Connor (3000m steeplechase), Elizabeth Ndudi (long jump), Saragh Buggy (triple jump), Aoife O'Sullivan (high jump), Clodagh Walsh (pole vault), Michaela Walsh (shot put), Niamh Fogarty (discus), Nicola Tuthill (discus), Grace Casey (javelin), Ciara Neville (4x100m), Sarah Leahy (4x100m), Aisling Kelly (4x100m reserve), Sharlene Mawdsley (mixed 4x400m), Cliodhna Manning (mixed 4x400m), Rachel McCann (mixed 4x400m reserve). Men Bori Akinola (100m, 4x100m), Andrew Egan (200m, 4x100m), Cillín Greene (400m, mixed 4x400m), Cian McPhillips (800m), Shane Bracken (1500m), Brian Fay (5000m), Adam Nolan (110m hurdles), Fintan Dewhirst (400m hurdles), Finley Daly (3000m steeplechase), Shane Howard (long jump), Michael Alajiki (triple jump), David Cussen (high jump), Conor Callinan (pole vault), Eric Favors (shot put), Eoin Sheridan (discus), Sean Mockler (hammer), Conor Cusack (javelin), Michael Farrelly (4x100m), Sean Aigboboh (4x100m), Marcus Lawler (4x100m), Ciaran Carthy (mixed 4x400m), Calllum Baird (mixed 4x400m).
