The likes of Bayanda Walaza, Leendert Koekemoer, Jan-Hendrik Heymans and Tumi Ramokgopa are showing incredible potential.
Tumi Ramokgopa secured two medals at the World Athletics U20 Championships in Eugene last week. Picture: Emilee Chinn/Getty Images/World Athletics
The conversion rate from youth to senior level in athletics is poor, and when kids are competing well at the age of 16 or 17, it doesn’t give us any real indication of their ultimate potential.
But by the time they leave high school, if they are performing well, it suggests we might have a gem on our hands.
Already we have 20-year-old sprinter Bayanda Walaza proving he has the ability to develop into a truly world-class 100m athlete.
And at the World Athletics U20 Championships in Eugene last week, a few other youngsters showed they have similar ability.
Rising stars
Jan-Hendrik Heymans was the only SA athlete to win gold in Eugene, but what was most impressive was the 19-year-old athlete’s complete dominance in the javelin throw final. He landed the spear at 80.50m, more than six metres further than his nearest opponent.
Like Walaza, 19-year-old Leendert Koekemoer is already well known in local athletics, having played a key role in the national senior 4x400m relay team over the last couple of seasons. And he managed to pick up his first major individual medal in Eugene.
Though he settled for bronze, he was up against an incredible line-up, and the top three athletes in the 400m final all ran under 45 seconds.
Koekemoer also went on to lead the SA relay squad to the silver medal, and he could be the next big thing in one of South Africa’s strongest events on the track.
Versatile talent
Most exciting, however, is 18-year-old Tumi Ramokgopa, who has consistently climbed the local ranks in recent years.
Equally capable in the 100m hurdles and 400m hurdles events, she claimed silver medals in both at the world junior championships.
At some point, as Ramokgopa transitions to senior level, she is probably going to have to choose which distance she wants to specialise in, but she is remarkably talented and her versatility is unprecedented.
We can’t get ahead of ourselves, and we’ll have to hope they continue to improve over the next few years, but between the likes of Walaza, Heymans, Koekemoer and Ramokgopa, South African athletics might be on the verge of a golden era.
