Ma
Feature
The Ultimate
Comeback
Not so long ago it appeared that long jumper Luvo Manyonga ’ s athletics career was over , but after turning his life around and completing a remarkable comeback , he won a silver medal at the Rio Olympics , and now he is aiming for still more honours .
– BY KYLE DEELEY & SEAN FALCONER
A top level athletic career is usually only a few years long , and it can take an athlete a number of years , including those allimportant formative years in the junior ranks , to work up to the level needed to compete at Olympic , World Champs and Diamond League level . Many athletes then only stay at that level for a short period of time , so they have to make the most of their peak athletic years , and thus losing a few years for a positive drugs test can spell the end of an athlete ’ s career , because coming back to top level competition can be even harder than getting there in the first place .
That said , long jumper Luvo Manyonga didn ’ t just come back to compete again . He went all the way to the Rio Olympics last August and brought home a silver medal thanks to his soaring 8.37m leap . “ The Olympics for me was the most incredible thing I have ever experienced . I had an incredible few days and I knew it was my time to reach for the stars . I knew I had what it took and I made sure I did what needed to be done ,” says Luvo , typically humble about what is one of the ultimate comeback stories !
Jumping to Stardom
Luvo ’ s athletic talent was spotted when he was attending Desmond Tutu High School in the Mbekweni township on the outskirts of Paarl , in the Boland area . At the 2009 Boland regional track and field champs , he was closely watched by the late Mario Smith , then one of the coaches at the University of Stellenbosch . “ Mario noticed my talent after watching me jump , and told me I had the most perfect technique he had ever seen , and that I had serious potential ,” says Luvo .
That saw the youngster start training with Mario at Maties , and his first international success soon followed at the 2009 African Junior Champs in Bambous , Mauritius , where he jumped 7.49m for the bronze medal . He ended the year with a new best of 7.65m , then broke through the eight-metre barrier in 2010 with a massive 8.19m jump in Germany , which is still the African and South African Junior Record , and followed that with a 7.99m jump to win the gold medal at the 2010 Junior World Champs in Moncton , Canada .
With a bright career seemingly ahead of him , Luvo turned professional in 2011 , and describes it as a major milestone : “ Competing as a professional was incredible . I met new people and had to compete against some of the best in the world , and this for me was an amazing achievement .” In July that year he jumped 8.26m in Finland , climbing to second on the all-time SA list , then finished fifth with an 8.21m jump in the final of his first Senior World Champs in Daegu , South Korea . Just two weeks later he was in action again at the All-Africa Games in Maputo , Mozambique , winning the gold medal thanks to an 8.02m jump , and he says “ This was possibly the greatest experience of my life to that point . I had won my first real gold medal .”
From Hero to Villain
But then it all went horribly wrong . In March 2012 , following drug testing at a national meet , it was announced that he had tested positive for a banned substance . However , instead of it being for one of the usual performance-enhancing substances , it turned out to be the recreational
Images : Reg Caldecott
18 ISSUE 91 FEBRUARY 2017 / www . modernathlete . co . za