FEATURE
KGO
SEKGODISO
SWITCHES FOCUS TO OUTDOOR PODIUM
By Karien Jonckheere
Last year she was on top of the world. This year, things haven’ t quite gone according to plan. But Prudence Sekgodiso remains confident she’ ll get back there …
Prudence Sekgodiso knows what it means to stun the athletics world.
In March 2025, she became the first South African woman to win a world indoor title, storming to gold in the 800m final at the World Athletics Indoor Championships in Nanjing, China. She produced a furious kick in the closing stages, clocking 1 minute 58.40 seconds to break her own national indoor record and set the fastest time in the world that year.
“ I was in disbelief after I crossed the finish line until I could actually stand on the podium. That was the best moment ever in my career so far,” she said of the experience.
Despite having won several Diamond League races and having reached the Olympic final the year before, that victory in China became a turning point for the young star.“ A lot changed from being the Prudence that used to be only known in South Africa, but to the world, from that moment I was one of the best in the world,” she explained.
Suddenly, the then-23-year-old from Limpopo was no longer just a national champion, she was a global name, ranked among the world’ s best over 800m.
Yet the glow of history has given way to the grind of reality. Two disappointing races at the start of 2026, finishing well over two minutes in both, meant she had to make the tough decision not to return to Europe to try and qualify and then defend her title at this year’ s World Athletics Indoor Championships, which take place in Kujawy Pomorze, Poland, from 20-22 March.
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“ The first two indoor races weren ' t quite what I had hoped for,” she explained.“ I think I was a bit too cautious, trying to feel my way back into racing after the off-season and after what happened at worlds in Tokyo. I wasn ' t quite hitting my top-end speed, and my finishes weren ' t as strong as I ' d like.”
Much was expected from the Pretoria-based star when she travelled to Tokyo for the World Athletics Championships in September last year. But it seemed her indoor success didn’ t translate, or perhaps starting her season so early in the year had just taken too much out of her. She didn’ t progress past the heats in Japan after feeling a hamstring niggle during the warm-up.
“ It was quite hard to be honest, but everything happens for a reason. I was lucky enough because world champs were at the end of the season, so I had enough time to recover emotionally and physically. It hit me hard that I wasn’ t seeing my name at the final because that was the main goal, to be in the final,” she said of that experience.
Missing out on the World Athletics Indoor Championships is also a tough pill to swallow.
“ It ' s tough, obviously. I love competing at that level, and it ' s a big deal to be the defending champion. But I ' ve got to focus on the bigger picture.
“ Honestly, I just felt like my focus was shifting outdoors, and I didn ' t want to spread myself too thin. I want to prioritise my training and come back strong for the Commonwealth Games.
Photos courtesy of Athletics South Africa / Anton Geyser / World Athletics – Dan Vernon