Team South Africa received a warm welcome upon arrival at OR Tambo International Airport in Johannesburg on Wednesday evening following their heroics at the World Relays in China last weekend.
The South Africans produced stellar performances at the World Relays, setting the stage for a strong world championship campaign in Tokyo as they claimed three medals (two gold and a bronze) in their respective disciplines.
The relay squads not only earned medals in Guangzhou, China, but also sent a strong message about their ambitions for the upcoming World Athletics Championships in Tokyo in September.
The 4x100m team of Bayanda Walaza, Sinesipho Dambile, Bradley Nkoana and Akani Simbine triumphed in the final with an impressive time of 37.61 seconds, narrowly defeating the United States, who finished second in 37.66.
Dambile joined forces with the trio that won silver at the 2024 Paris Olympics, continuing their strong form and coming close to the South African record of 37.57 seconds they set at the Games last year.
The 23-year-old Dambile was pleased to be back with the 4x100m team.
“Being back on the 4×100 pool was important to me,” Dambile told the media at the OR Tambo International Airport on their return on Wednesday.
“I knew that I had potential to be part of the team because I have been in the pool since 2019, but this time, I also knew I had a strong team and we could bring it home.
“I knew I was in great shape, and I had to run a great back stretch to put the team in a great position, and I did that in the heats and the final.”
The men’s 4x400m team, comprised of Gardeo Isaacs, Udeme Okon, Leendert Koekemoer and Zakithi Nene, had an impressive outing as well, and they secured a convincing victory with a time of 2:57.50, ahead of Belgium (2:58.19) and Botswana (2:58.27).
“I ran the anchor leg, but I feel like my teammates made my job so much easier for me. We had a nice blend of youth and experience,” Nene said about the gold medallists.
“We gave probably the two toughest legs to the youngest athletes Udeme and Leendert.
“It’s not really a new story, but a team story, as team work makes the dream work.
“I am honestly chuffed with what we have achieved as a team, and I am looking forward to rubbing shoulders with them again leading up to Tokyo and LA 2028.”
The 4x400m women’s team of Shirley Nekhubui, Miranda Coetzee, Precious Molepo and Zeney Geldenhuys earned a bronze medal with a time of 3:24.84 (SA record), and team captain Geldenhuys was pleased with what they achieved and their qualification for Tokyo.
“Our main goal was for the women to qualify,” she said.
“We were surprised that it was an SA record.
“And for the final we were excited that we had Miranda with fresh legs.
“The rest of us held back in the heats, and that brought us the bronze medal.”
