Wayde becomes fastest man in the world over 400m
South African Wayde van Niekerk broke Michael Johnson’s long-standing 400m world record when he won the country’s first gold medal, in Rio de Janeiro, on Monday, August 15.
The 24-year-old sprinter shocked the world when he clocked 43.03 seconds in the men’s final, to shatter the American great’s 17-year-old record of 43.18, leaving former Olympic champions Kirani James of Grenada and American LaShawn Merritt, far in his wake.
The Cape Town-born van Niekerk first made his mark on the world stage at the 2015 Beijing World Championships, where he won gold following an interesting battle with James and Merritt, with all three men going under the 44 second benchmark.
That was preceded by a silver medal he won at the Commonwealth Games, in Glasgow, in 2014.
His Olympic final victory was made more astonishing by a couple of other factors.
He qualified fifth fastest for the final, which landed him in the unfavourable lane eight for the final showdown, having complained about hamstring niggles in both the heats and semi-final.
This immediately lowered expectations for the world champion, with James and Merritt tipped as heavy favourites to win gold.
The rest was history.
Not only was it his first Olympic medal, he also became the first man to win an Olympic 400m title from lane eight.
Earlier this year, he ran 9.98 seconds for the 100m, to become the first athlete to run under 10 seconds for the 100m, 20 seconds for the 200m and 44 seconds for 400m.
He praised Johnson during his post-race soliloquy, stating: “I have dreamed of this since I was a kid.
“I believed it was possible. I am just glad things went my way. I thank Michael Johnson for setting such a great example for us. I just did my best.” – @SabeloBoksburg
