Seventeen-year-old hurdling sensation Tumi Ramokgopa announced herself as one of South Africa’s brightest young athletes by shattering the national junior record in the 100m hurdles at the ASA Grand Prix 2 on Wednesday night. Competing at the UJ Stadium in Johannesburg, Ramokgopa finished in 13.22 seconds, surpassing the previous U20 record of 13.35 set by Taylon Bieldt in 2016.
Although she did not take first place in the race, Ramokgopa delivered a standout performance, finishing second behind Marione Fourie, South Africa’s senior record holder, who clocked 12.69 seconds. Despite the defeat, Ramokgopa was overjoyed by her achievement, especially considering she had already competed earlier in the day in the 400m hurdles, where she set a personal best of 56.48 seconds.
“I’m overwhelmed. I’m in disbelief. I knew running against Marione would push me to my limit, but I didn’t expect to go this fast. Breaking the record in my first year as a junior means a lot to me.” said Ramokgopa after the race.
Among several other impressive performances at the ASA Grand Prix 2, Bayanda Walaza set a new SA U20 record in the men’s 200m, clocking 20.08 seconds to break Clarence Munyai’s 2017 mark of 20.10. Udeme Okon claimed victory in the men’s 400m, setting a personal best of 45.27, ahead of Olympic semi-finalist Lythe Pillay, who finished in 45.74.
Kenyan sprint star Ferdinand Omanyala dominated the men’s 100m, crossing the line in 10.08 seconds, while Ketlhobogile Haungura of Botswana delivered a commanding performance in the men’s 800m, winning in 1:43.88. In the 400m hurdles, 20-year-old Wernich van Rensburg took top honors with a time of 49.24, and in the men’s long jump, Nikithemba Hani secured victory with a leap of 8.01m.
IOL Sport