ATHLETICS - The African Mirror

May

12

2025

HISTORY: SA awesome foursomes become first Africans to win gold at world relay champs

ATHLETICS

SOUTH Africa’s men’s relay teams delivered a landmark performance at the 2025 World Athletics Relays in Guangzhou, clinching gold in both the 4x100m and 4x400m events and becoming the first African nation to win the men’s 4x100m at the championship. The South African quartet of Bayanda Walaza, Sinesipho Dambile, Bradley Nkoana, and Akani Simbine stormed to victory in the men’s 4x100m final, clocking a world-leading 37.61 seconds. Simbine anchored the team, overtaking the United States’ Brandon Hicklin in the final stretch to secure the win. Team USA finished a close second in 37.66 seconds, while Canada, led by Olympic champion…

Apr

05

2025

By The African Mirror

Exclusive: Maswanganyi reveals how Akani Simbine helped shape his Olympic dream

ATHLETICS

THE team of Akani Simbine, Bayanda Walaza, Bradley Nkoana and Benjamin Richardson secured South Africa’s place in the men’s 4x100m relay finals at the 2024 Paris Olympics following their impressive qualifying season-best time of 38.08 at the World Relays in the Bahamas last May. Anchored by the class and experience of Simbine, South Africa was up against it in the final after booking their place with yet another impressive season-best time of 37.94 behind the United States of America (37.47) in the first heat. The North Americans would later be disqualified in the final, with neighbours Canada (37.50) beating South…

Mar

13

2025

By Mpho Rantao

SA’s Prudence Sekgodiso cruises to 800m win at ASA Grand Prix

ATHLETICS

SOUTH Africa’s Prudence Sekgodiso claimed a smooth win in the 800m race on day one of the Athletics South Africa (ASA) Grand Prix at the Pilditch Stadium in the South African capital, Pretoria. The 2024 Paris Olympics finalist secured the win in an unofficial time of 1:59.01, ahead of Botswana’s Oratilwe Nowe with a time of 1:59.46, and fellow South African Charne Swart, who completed the podium with a time of 2:01.57. Nowe set the pace early on in the race with Sekgodiso matching her pace until she surpassed her after the 600m mark, when she took the lead when…

Feb

17

2025

By The African Mirror

The story of 49 seconds: a testament to African athletic brilliance

ATHLETICS

ON a historic Sunday in Barcelona, Uganda's Jacob Kiplimo didn't just break a record – he shattered it with a performance that echoes the heartbeat of African athletic dominance. Each of the 49 seconds he carved from the previous world half-marathon record represents a story of excellence, dedication, and the unmatched spirit of African distance running. In an astounding time of 56:41, Kiplimo rewrote history, demolishing Yomif Kejelcha's mark of 57:30. This wasn't merely a victory; it was a masterclass in human potential. His feat becomes even more remarkable when you consider the progression of this record – from Moses…

Feb

11

2025

By The African Mirror

Sekgodiso and Kipruto shine at Indoor Athletics

ATHLETICS

PRUDENCE Sekgodiso's joy was palpable after her electrifying 800m performance. Weeks after her World Indoor Tour Gold debut in Belgrade, the Olympic finalist from South Africa shattered expectations, conquering the indoor 800m with a blazing national record of 1:59.88. This phenomenal time fell just a fraction of a second short of the world lead, highlighting Sekgodiso's exceptional talent. Following the pacemaker and seasoned Ethiopian athlete Habitam Alemu—a four-time world indoor finalist—through the halfway mark in a blistering 57.20 seconds, Sekgodiso unleashed her power. With a surge of unmatched speed, she surged past a fading Alemu on the final back straight.…

Sep

22

2024

By STEPHEN GRANGER

Cape Town Marathon attracts Africa’s running royalty

ATHLETICS

RUNNING royalty is heading to Cape Town next month to race the Sanlam Cape Town Marathon (SCTM) in what is a foretaste of what is to come in the next few years. Some of the biggest names in the marathon game will be racing Africa’s premier marathon in just over four weeks as excitement builds towards Cape Town joining the exclusive Abbott’s Marathon Majors club in May 2026. The SCTM forty-day launch released the names of several marathon superstars, and while most are past the dizzy heights reached in their hey days, simply having the likes of former world record…

Sep

17

2024

By The African Mirror

Eliud Kipchoge reveals lessons from Paris Olympics and callenges Federations to prioritise athlete welfare

ATHLETICS

THE 2024 Paris Olympics marked exactly two decades since double Olympic marathon champion Eliud Kipchoge made his Olympic debut. The legendary marathoner first ran in the Athens Olympics in 2004 where he won the 5,000m bronze medal before upgrading to silver four years later in Beijing in the same event. By 2008, Kipchoge had already been an established name in distance running, boasting two world championship medals and two at the Olympics. This year, the legendary marathoner led team Kenya to the Olympics together with a strong contingent that included 2024 TCS London Marathon champion Alex Mutiso and 2022 Chicago…

Aug

28

2024

By KRISTY SIEGFRIED

Refugee athlete and guide united in their quest for Paralympic gold

ATHLETICS

A week before the Paris 2024 Paralympics, Guillaume Junior Atangana and his guide and fellow refugee Donard Nyamjua received a surprise call from the President of the International Paralympic Committee, Andrew Parsons. Junior, as many call him, was overjoyed and touched when the President informed him that he would be carrying the flag into the Opening Ceremony for the Refugee Paralympic Team, accompanied by Donard. “I’m very moved and happy really to have this announced by the President. It gives me shivers and I’m really happy. I can already picture it in my head. I see myself as a big…

Aug

02

2024

By STEPHEN GRANGER, BIRD STORY AGENCY

Paris 2024: Africa is on a marathon quest for Olympic glory in Paris

ATHLETICS

THE Olympic marathon is arguably the ultimate symbol of Olympism as envisioned by the modern Olympic founder, Pierre de Coubertin, the 2024 Olympics marathon, which will see runners battle in a 42.195 km race between Paris and Versailles, will provide a spectacular finale for the XXXIII Olympiad. The present marathon enjoys a rich history and originates in the first modern Olympics in Athens in 1896. At the time, De Coubertin described the Olympic Spirit as "a philosophy of life, exalting and combining in a balanced whole the qualities of body, will and mind…" 128 years after Greek water carrier Spyridon…

Jul

30

2024

By STEPHEN GRANGER, BIRD STORY AGENCY

Road to Paris: South Africa’s rising women marathoners will be chasing Olympic glory in Paris

ATHLETICS

AS athletes arrive in Paris for the 2024 Olympic Games, South African distance-running talent Cian Oldknow is hopeful she will transcend a recent setback, harnessing the unwavering energy of her supporters with the promise of Olympic glory. Following the old African proverb ‘It takes a village…,’ twenty-seven-year-old Oldknow was surprised and heartened to see and hear her supporters, dubbed 'Cian’s Army,' along the route of the Durban International Marathon, which doubled as the South African Marathon Championships in late April. “That was a complete surprise, but it certainly gave me a boost,” said Oldknow after breaking the tape in record…