Cape Town — Akani Simbine ran a blistering final leg of the men’s 4x100m relay to power South Africa to a 2nd place finish behind Canada.
The South African team was made up of Simbine, 100m and 200m semi-finalist, Shaun Maswanganyi, and two teenagers, Bayanda Walaza (18) and Bradley Nkoana (19), who stormed around the track in a new South African and African record of 37.57 seconds, just 0.07 seconds away from the Canadians, who were anchored home by the 200m champion from Tokyo, Andre De Grasse.
Key to the South Africans performance, besides their outstanding speed, was the smooth baton exchanges, as the team rarely looked in danger of dropping the baton. Walaza, known for his unique running style, got the team off to a strong start, clocking 10.41 before handing the baton to Maswanganyi, who ran a smooth back stretch in 9.06.
Nkoana ran a good bend on the 3rd leg in 9.32, and by the time he handed the baton to Simbine, South Africa were in 5th place. However, Simbine showed why he is the South African 100m record holder as he ran the final leg in an 8.78 split to push South Africa past Italy, Japan and France to take 2nd place.
That final leg from Akani Simbine ⚡️💨
He passes four other teams to secure the silver medal for South Africa in the Men’s 4x100m relay 🇿🇦
The celebrations at the end show you just what it means to the boys 💚#Paris2024 #CloserToYourChampions pic.twitter.com/mwndnmTYzd
— SuperSport 🏆 (@SuperSportTV) August 9, 2024
It was an incredible moment for Simbine, who suffered heartbreak on Sunday evening when he finished 4th in the 100m final, finishing 0.01 seconds behind America’s Fred Kerley, despite running a personal best of 9.82 seconds.
South Africa came into the final as the 2nd quickest qualifiers, from Thursday’s heats. The team was forced into a swift reshuffle after Benjamin Richardson injured his hamstring during the 200m repechage round, forcing Maswanganyi to run 2nd and Walaza to lead the team, according to TimesLIVE.
They knew there was room for improvement ahead of the final and the team delivered when it mattered most.
During the post race interview, each member of the team could not contain their excitement following the conclusion of the race. Walaza, who is still in matric, was excited to head back to school as a medalist. Nkoana was grateful for the support from God and his family, while Maswanganyi was confident that this was the start of something great for the team
Simbine’s relief was clear to see on his face after years of disappointment, having also secured 4th and 5th place finishes in the 100m finals in Tokyo 2020 and Rio 2016, respectively.
“I’m an Olympic medalist, I’m so happy. I’m so happy that we came out here, we ran and we got a silver medal, and an African record to top it up, so for me it’s just, ‘finally I got an Olympic medal’ and I’m just so happy for the guys and for the country, he said.
He added that his journey is not about the medals but consistency and he remains ready to fight no matter what, and he was touched to know that he is inspiring a new generation in Africa.
South Africa men’s 4X100m team Bayanda Walaza, Shaun Maswanganyi, Bradley Nkoana and Akani Simbine after they won silver at the #Olympics .
📹 @OfficialTeamRSA pic.twitter.com/QlSMYyFdPn— Mahlatse Mphahlele (@BraMahlatse) August 9, 2024
Follow African Insider on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram
Picture: X/@WorldAthletics
For more African news, visit Africaninsider.com
Compiled by Matthew Petersen
