Wayde van Niekerk Breaks World Sprinting Record
South African athlete Wayde van Niekerk made sprinting history on Saturday in Bloemfontein when he became the first man to ever run faster than 10 seconds for 100m, 20 seconds for 200m and 44 seconds for 400m after smashing his PB (personal best) in the shorter sprint at the Free State Championships in Bloemfontein. Ever humble, […]
South African athlete Wayde van Niekerk made sprinting history on Saturday in Bloemfontein when he became the first man to ever run faster than 10 seconds for 100m, 20 seconds for 200m and 44 seconds for 400m after smashing his PB (personal best) in the shorter sprint at the Free State Championships in Bloemfontein.
Ever humble, Wayde tweeted afterwards: “Wow!!! Truly grateful and humbled by the opportunity and talents the Lord has blessed me with…”
The International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) pointed out that 23-year-old Wayde hasn’t actually competed in a 100m race since his junior days, so his previous PB of 10.45 (which he set in Bloemfontein back in 2011) was “due for serious revision” but that “he surprised almost everyone, himself included, with his performance on Saturday”.
He clocked a PB of 10.12 into a -1.9m/s headwind in the heats. Then the breeze changed direction for the final. And with a 1.5m/s following wind to his advantage – and perhaps a little bit of assistance from Bloemfontein’s altitude – Van Niekerk won the final in 9.98.
Afterwards he tweeted: “It’s crazy. I’m truly grateful for this moment and appreciative of everyone’s support.”
In an article by Jon Mulkeen, IAAF reported that Wayde is the second South African sprinter this week to break the 10-second barrier for 100m. Fellow compatriot Akani Simbine set a national record of 9.96 in Pretoria on Tuesday.
“Van Niekerk set lifetime bests at all other sprint distances last year. He set a South African 200m record of 19.94 in Luzern, broke the African 300m record with 31.63 in Birmingham and then went to fourth on the world all-time list over 400m with his memorable 43.48 victory at the IAAF World Championships Beijing 2015,” wrote IAAF.
In spite of his incredible all-round sprinting ability, the South African athlete confirmed this week this his sole focus for the 2016 Olympics will be the 400m race.
“For the Olympics I am purely focused on the 400,” he told Reuters. “I believe that I stand quite a good chance there now, so I don’t think I’m going to gamble too much at Rio.”
After his amazing world-breaking sprint earlier today, SyntacticSugarDaddy tweeted: “That awkward moment when you spend mega bucks for @usainbolt for an advertising campaign while you have @WaydeDreamer in your back yard” – referring to Telkom’s ad campaign in partnership with Jamaican athlete Usain Bolt.
Minister of Sport @MbalulaFikile tweeted “Proud moment for our SA Sports star of the year 2015” and Proteas cricket legend AB de Villiers tweeted “Don’t know the man, but WOW! Take a bow.”
Former American sprinter and Olympic gold medallist Michael Johnson tweeted: “Sub 10, sub 20, sub 44. That’s crazy. Great things could be ahead for @WaydeDreamer”
#GoSouthAfrica!