TRACK & FIELD
Lleyton Davids flew the furthest in the men ’ s triple jump
Zeney van der Walt ( 288 ) on her way to a World Champs qualifier in the women ’ s 400m hurdles
Meanwhile , Van der Walt secured her World Championships qualifying time in the 400m hurdles . The Commonwealth Games bronze medallist claimed a third national title in a time of 54.82 . “ I just focused on my own race , so I didn ’ t hear anyone or see anyone . I wanted to run a sub-55 , so I ’ m very grateful for that ,” she said . “ It felt like a really nice race . I kept calm , focused , and my race plan went almost as perfectly as I wanted it to .”
Repeat Winners
Another 100m sprinter to record a fifth national title was Carina Horn . She held on for victory in 11.52 seconds , just in front of Tamzin Thomas , who took the silver in 11.58 . “ It was a bit tough … there was a bit of a headwind but I ’ m just happy to defend my title ,” said Horn . As for claiming a fifth title , she added , “ It feels good . It ’ s probably my second-last year of competing , so it ’ s good to have it back again .” On the other end of the distance spectrum , Glenrose Xaba dominated the women ’ s 10,000m final . The
28-year-old lapped almost the entire field on her way to a sixth national title in this event , just missing the sub-33-minute mark as she finished in 33:02.13 . “ It ’ s high altitude so I ’ m happy with the time ,” said Xaba afterwards , pointing to the fact that she was hoping to have run alongside her coach , Caster Semenya .
800m champion
The two-time Olympic was initially included on
Glenrose Xaba took her sixth national title in the women ’ s 10,000m
the start list for the race but chose not to compete in what would effectively have been her final competitive race , with World Athletics ’ new regulations barring her participation in all distances because of naturally occurring testosterone levels , which came into effect on Friday 31 March . Meanwhile , other notable winners in the middle distances were Maxime Chaumeton in the men ’ s 5000m , Kyla Jacobs in the women ’ s 5000m and Ashley ‘ Blokkie ’ Smith in the men ’ s 3000m steeplechase .
Pick of the Field Events
Another of the weekend ’ s notable performances came from female hammer thrower Leandri Geel , who only switched to the event from discus four years ago . Coached by former Commonwealth Games champion and multiple SA Champ , Chris Harmse , Geel has gone from strength to strength and broke the South African Record with a final-round effort of 65.18m . While the distance is still a modest one by international standards , Geel believes South African hammer throw is on the rise . on gold with 16.91m , while his 17-year-old brother , Ethan , wasn ’ t far behind , securing the bronze medal with a jump of 16.85m . All those distances were wind-assisted , however , as strong gusts blew a storm towards the McArthur Stadium .
Based in Vereeniging after their parents returned to the country from New Zealand , the Olivier brothers have been rewriting the Kiwi record books in recent months . In February , Welre broke the senior New Zealand Record , which had stood for 45 years , with a jump of 16.48m . Ethan also bettered the under-20 Kiwi record with a leap of 16.22m .
Of course , the Olivier name is well-known in triplejumping circles in SA , with the boys ’ father and coach , Wikus , having held the South African Record of 16.89m from 1994 to 2004 , when it was broken by Khotso Mokoena ’ s leap of 16.96m . Olympic long jump silver medallist Mokoena went on to better that with a 17.35m effort in 2014 , which still stands as the SA Record . “ I am very proud of the boys , we worked hard the whole year ,” said Wikus afterwards . “ It ’ s just a pity the wind was a bit strong . This was the best triple jump competition in years , with three jumpers so close to 17 metres .”
Miranda Coetzee did the double in the women ’ s 200m and 400m sprints
Carina Horn claimed a fifth women ’ s 100m title
“ It ’ s such a relief to get the record , because I ’ ve been working so hard and it just all fell into place today ,” said the elated Krugersdorp athlete afterwards . “ We really want to compete at international level , but those girls are averaging over 70 metres , so we have to make sure we get that SA Record closer to that every single time … and with the right people on your side , the right coach , the right technique , everything falls into place , and I ’ m sure it ’ s possible .”
Elsewhere an absorbing men ’ s triple jump competition was decided by just one centimetre , with Lleyton Davids securing a third consecutive national title with a leap of 16.92m . Welre Olivier just missed out
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