On Sunday night Akani Simbine will bid to finally bury one of the biggest ghosts in world athletics.
After eight years and two Olympic podium misses measuring a combined nine-hundredth of a second, the 30-year-old sprinter will line up for his third straight Games 100m semifinal this evening and hopefully, less than two hours later, his third consecutive final.
Simbine leads a trio of South Africans into the three-heat round shortly after 8pm when 27 runners will slug it out for a spot in the eight-lane final, scheduled for 9.50pm.
US-based Shaun Maswanganyi competes in the first of the three heats, facing US world champion Noah Lyles and Jamaican Oblique Seville.
Next up is Simbine, going against Letsile Tebogo of Botswana, silver medallist at last year’s world championships, American Kenny Bednarek and Italian Olympic champion Marcell Jacobs.
Benjamin Richardson is the third one, squaring off against Jamaican Kishane Thompson, the fastest man in the world this year, Canadian Andre De Grasse, 2022 world champion Fred Kerley of the US and Kenyan Ferdinand Omanyala.
The first two from each semifinal will qualify automatically with the next two fastest losers going through to the final.
This is considered the most open 100m race in years and there’s going to be blood on the Stade de France track by the end of the semifinals.
It was just the heat, getting through to the next round, and the body’s feeling good, healthy and I’m looking forward to it
— Akani Simbine, SA sprinter
For those who get through to the final the atmosphere will be electric, thanks to this vocal crowd that have been splitting ears regularly through the two days of competition so far.
Also in battle tonight is middle-distance prospect Prudence Sekgodiso in the women’s 800m semifinals, trying to book a spot in tomorrow night’s final.
Simbine, known to his training partners as Mr Chill, maintained his calm demeanour after the heats, where he won in 10.03sec, beating Jamaican Ackeem Blake in the process.
His start was below par, but he didn’t fuss about it. “It was just a normal heat, very comfortable heat. Just the starter held us very long on the blocks, but other than that it was fine. It was just the heat, getting through to the next round, and the body’s feeling good, healthy and I’m looking forward to it,” said the veteran, fifth at Rio 2016 and a haunting fourth in Tokyo three years ago.
Simbine displayed a stoic maturity, sounding as blasé as a nine-to-five businessman, which suggested he’s controlling his emotions and following his philosophy of taking it one step at a time.
Benjamin Richardson admitted he had been nervous before the heats, where he finished fourth in 10.06sec and had to qualify as the fastest loser of the round. “I was quite nervous, but now I’m good so I’m more confident now … as soon as I finished running I was set free and I was good again. I know I’ll do good in the semis, I’ll surprise a few people.”
Maswanganyi, who also went 10.06, finishing third behind Louie Hinchcliffe of Britain and Lyles, was upbeat about his chances. “I’m just taking that as a confidence-booster for the semifinal,” said the US-based speedster, who is trained by the legendary Carl Lewis.
“I made a few mistakes in that race, I got a little too upright after I got ahead. I kind of lost the lead but I knew I went wrong with that so now I’m going to correct that in the next couple of sessions in my warm-up. I know what it takes to compete with these guys … I know what I’ll need to make the final, probably around 9-9 low.”
Maswanganyi got off to a lightning start and was the first out the blocks, also a good sign for the 4x100m relay late next week. “I’m a strong starter, and that’s what I’ve been working on mostly,” he said. “I believe we can be medal contenders.”
But Maswanganyi said Wayde van Niekerk had not yet participated in a 4x100m training session with the squad. “He hasn’t practised with us, he hasn’t had any sessions with us,” he said, adding it would be difficult to include him without him taking part in drills.
For Simbine, however, his sole focus was the 100m semifinal. “The relay, that’s next week’s things to think about. Right now we’re just trying to get through to the next round and make sure we’re healthy and ready for it.”
He’s spent eight years preparing for Sunday night
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