Jade Doran delivered a steeplechase masterclass on her way to defending her U18 women’s 2000m steeplechase title, while Chelsea van Dyk claimed another double at the ASA U16, U18, U20 and U23 track and field championships at Germiston Stadium.

Doran showed her tactical astuteness when she allowed Selmarie Erasmus of Western Province to do all the work while she remained on her shoulder. She powered to victory on the final lap, storming to the title in a new personal best 07:00.21.

Van Dyk added the U16 girls’ 3000m to the 1500m she won on day two of the event. She won the race in a dominant 09:50.34 for her second successive championship double.

Kempton Park middle-distance sensation Michael Bekker ended a successful with a second silver after his second place in the U18 men’s 3000m. He clocked 08:43.20 to finish behind champion Tyran Brooks, who won the race in 08:42.16.

Meanwhile, three more records fell as Matodzi Ndou, Megan Nieman and Ansume de Beer brought the curtain down on a sensational national championship, delivering record-breaking performances on the final day.

Ndou lit up the track in the U20 men’s 400m hurdles, storming to a new national record of 48.64 to eclipse Zazini Sokwakhana’s long-standing 48.73. Serial record-breaker Nieman followed suit in the U18 girls’ race, slicing through the field to clock 56.54 and bettering her own mark of 56.57 she set in Pretoria last month.

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In the field, De Beer soared to new heights in the U23 women’s pole vault, clearing 4.18m to improve her own national record of 4.16m, set in Stellenbosch last year, to secure the gold medal.

Viwe Jingqi returned to the track to claim the U23 women’s 200m title in 23.21, adding to her 100m victory on day two. Athletics Free State’s Bertie Cruywagen also impressed in the sprints, powering to victory in the U23 men’s 200m in 20.58.

The middle-distance events delivered their own drama. Tiisetso Malungane showed composure beyond his years to edge Emil Els in a thrilling U18 men’s 800m, winning in 1:47.65 — the fastest time recorded across all age groups in the event. Els took second in 1:48.68, with Boland’s Andrew van Wyk third in 1:50.83.

In the women’s U23 800m, Tinyiko Ndala produced a perfectly timed finish to pip CGA’s Paballo Radebe on the line, winning in 2:08.37 to Radebe’s 2:08.60. The men’s race was just as competitive, with the lanky Dumisani Motloung upsetting favourite Molifi Mohlomi to clinch gold in 1:48.55, while Mohlomi settled for silver in 1:48.86.

AGN capped off a dominant showing by finishing top of the medal standings with an impressive 153 medals (54 gold, 54 silver and 45 bronze), ahead of CGA in second place with a total of 83 medals and Boland in third with 69.

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