South Africa’s 400m star Zakithi Nene credits a hard reset after the Paris Olympics for taking him up a level in the one-lap sprint, making him one of the early favourites for the world championships in Tokyo later this year.
The tall, easy-going sprinter with a fluid, upright style blazed to this year’s world-leading time of 43.76sec at the Kip Keino Classic in Nairobi.
The personal best time left him in elite company, joining 400m world record holder Wayde van Niekerk as the only South African athletes to run under 44 seconds in the event.
A narrow loss to Olympic champion Quincy Hall (44.22) at the Rome Diamond League meeting by one-hundredth of a second the following weekend (44.23) denied him back-to-back titles.
When we caught up with him at Kings Park Athletics Stadium in Durban recently, it was clear how much that result had hurt.
No pain, no gain
Under the watchful eye of coach Victor Vaz, he was put through a gruelling training routine that made me tired just watching, gliding over the track in blustery conditions at speeds that seemed barely human. Poetry in motion.
And just when it looked like he was spent, he would go again after a short rest, showing the kind of drive and determination that champions are made of as he pushed through the pain barrier time and again.
No pain, no gain, they say, and for the likeable 27-year-old from Ladysmith, who spent most of his life in Durban, right now the gains are there for the world to see.
The turning point for the speedster came after last year’s Olympic Games in Paris.
“Walking into Paris I’d been a semi-finalist in the last three, four championships that I had participated in, so I was looking to go one better. Unfortunately, I also go knocked out in the semi-finals there too,” he told Independent Media Sport exclusively after his training session.
“And we finished fifth in the 4X400 relay in the Olympic final. So I think that was the turning point for me in my career.
“I think I really didn’t take the Paris Olympics too well, so I found myself in a position whereby my coach Victor Vaz and I were reflecting on the calendar year and how we did throughout the year.
“I’ve been doing 400s for too long and I’m pretty much programmed to train a certain way, run a certain way, compete a certain way. So we found ourselves in a position whereby we were just relearning the event, fixing some of the things which were an issue.”
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The big drop
That reset has worked wonders, just looking at how much Nene has been able to shave off his times this year.
“If you look at my progression over the last couple of years I’ve been very much consistent in running 44.8s, 44.7s in the calendar year and whether I’m injured beginning of the year I’ll end up running a 44 high,” he explained.
“So that big drop was always going to come, it was just a matter of when. So I think this year was that year.
“A lot has changed in our approach, a lot has changed in our programme and a lot has changed in our race model and right now it’s a very good feeling to see the rewards of all that – the sacrifices that we made, the changes that we made.”
One of the next big targets for the ace sprinter is next month’s London Diamond League meeting, where he could renew his rivalry with Hall and some of the world’s top 400m talent.
A mental battle
“These last couple of races that I ran was just like a true tester because more than anything, it wasn’t a matter of showing my level of fitness. More than anything, it was just the mental battle, the mental challenge that I had to go through,” he revealed.
“Lining up against athletes with these sorts of accolades – Quincy Hall is the reigning Olympic champion, Kirani James has also had success at the Olympics and world champs too – I think it was more like how do I control my nerves against the best in the world. Because it wasn’t a matter of form and shape, but whether I would be able to cope with the pressure. And I coped really well.
“We are in unfamiliar territory, myself and coach Vic, and right now it’s about how do we navigate around to with the target on our back. And I think we’re doing pretty well right now.”
The bigger picture is, of course, the 2025 World Athletics Championships in Tokyo from September 13-21.
There may be fears that Nene has peaked too soon, but the track star brushes off those concerns.
“We’re not worried about holding that form and shape until September – we’ve been doing that for years. But now we’re doing it at a different level. That’s the difference right now. I think we’re in a good space, I’m in a good space so that’s all that matters.”
If the current darling of KZN and SA athletics has proven one thing, it’s the ability to reach another level after a reset.
Watch out worlds!
