Modern Athlete Magazine Issue 117, April 2019 | Page 32

TRACK & FIELD
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If you are a track and field ‘nut’, then April is loaded with action to follow, with two Grand Prix meetings coming up, and
the SA Senior Track and Field Championships in Germiston at the end of the month. Here’s all you need to know about the
upcoming action. – BY MANFRED SEIDLER
The sponsorship injection for track certainly
comes at a good time, because the last time the
national federation had a sponsor for its national
championships was in 2006. Unfortunately, since then
the ASA has been beleaguered with internal strife
and lawsuits, and only since 2015 has there been
some semblance of stability. All of this means that the
sport can finally focus on what it actually should be
doing, putting on meetings to provide athletes with
opportunities to improve.
One Step Forward, Two Steps Back...
It certainly seemed as if a big breakthrough had been
reached in 2018, when for the first time in 15 years,
South Africa hosted an international, three-legged
series of track meets. It seemed like the dawn of a
new age, especially as some world class superstars
flew out to take on South Africa’s own stars, with
World 100m Champion Justin Gatlin being the biggest
international signing of the series.
But it all came crashing down when the sponsor
reneged on its agreement with ASA and the
marketing and organising company behind the meets,
Stillwater Sports (which has been instrumental in
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ISSUE 117 APRIL 2019 / www.modernathlete.co.za
securing the new sponsorship of the 2019 National
Championships). So no Grand Prix series in 2019,
and that has left a sour taste in the mouth of many
athletes, even if the dates originally earmarked on the
calendar for these meets had been questioned. This is
due to the incredibly long 2019 season, culminating in
the World Championships as late as October.
Now ASA will be putting on two meetings in April,
which they have dubbed Grand Prix meets. With no
sponsorship, they certainly will not hit the heights of
the 2018 series, and perhaps the name Grand Prix is
not entirely appropriate. Nevertheless, the events will
take place in Bloemfontein on Saturday 13 April and
in Potchefstroom on Thursday 18 April. Quite who
will be competing at these Grand Prix events was not
known at the time of writing.
All the Stars
The SA Senior Championships will take place on the
final weekend of April, from the 25th to the 27th, and
will be well worth coming to watch. ASA has made it
crystal clear that no matter who you are, if you want
to compete at the World Championships in October,
then you need to compete in your chosen event at the
SA Championships. That means that South Africans
will be guaranteed to see the stars of SA athletics in
action over the three days, including three-time World
Champion and two-time Olympic Champion, Caster
Semenya, Olympic and World Champion and world
record holder, Wayde van Niekerk, Olympic and World
Championship finalist and Africa and Commonwealth
Games gold medallist, Akani Simbine, as well as
World Champion, Commonwealth Champion and
Olympic silver medallist, Luvo Manyango.
T
his past month we heard great news for track
and field in South Africa: The Senior Champs
have just been splashed with a cash injection
from Sizwe Medical Fund and 3SixtyLife, and the
agreement with Athletics South Africa (ASA) is to
run for the next three years. 3SixtyLife is already
associated with ASA through its sponsorship of the
2019 license numbers that all athletes compete with in
road, track and cross country.