Although Wenda Nel (Tuks/HPC) won the African 400-hurdles title for a second time at the African Championships in Durban yesterday, as well as being a member of the 4x400 relay team that set a new South African record, she is confident that she is capable of performing even better.

“My coach and I decided to do things slightly different this year. During the past two seasons we worked for me to peak in May. Then my performances levelled off for a few weeks before we started working for me to peak for a second time. This season my coach, Irma Reyneke, decided that I should take part in slightly fewer races, in order to be at my best when it really matters. Hopefully it will be at the Olympic Games in Rio,” said Nel.

‘Consistent’ will certainly be the best word to describe Nel’s performances so far this season.  In the six times she raced she managed to dip under 55 seconds on four occasions, which can be considered as a kind of benchmark in international racing. Her best time of 54.61s is currently the joint 9th fastest time on the IAAF rankings.

“My snap moment when everything clicks in place during a race has not yet happened but I know it is just a matter of being patient. If the weather is good and there is a nice vibe in the stadium who knows what can happen,” said Nel, who won the 400-hurdles at the African Championships in a time of 54.86s.
A definite highlight for the Tuks/HPC athlete was being part of the 4x400 relay team who not only won a gold medal in Durban but also set a new South African record.  Their time of 3:28.49 is nearly two seconds faster than the record set in 2001.

A quick glance at the IAAF rankings will show that only USA university teams have so far run faster times in the 4x400 relay. The best time of a team consisting of Great Britain and Northern Ireland athletes is 3:28.62, while Jamaica’s best time is 3:29.00. Germany’s B-team has run 3:29.66. 
However, the chances of South Africa sending a 4x400 relay team to the Olympic Games in Rio is slim.  Somehow the decision makers in South African athletics don’t seem to rate winning a relay medal at the Games or at a World Championship to be equivalent to winning individual medals.

Nel’s next race will be when she competes in the London Diamond League Meeting on 22 July.  She is also on the waiting list to compete in Monaco (15 July).

The South African 400-hurdles champion, LJ van Zyl, will also compete in London.  He is considering to race in Budapest (18 July) as well.Van Zyl was disappointed with his 4th place finish at the African Championships.  Surprisingly he had to race in lane eight, despite having run one of the fastest times this season. “Racing in the outside lane is never easy but I don’t want to use that as an excuse. If I am quite honest I can only blame myself for not winning a medal. I did something wrong going over the last hurdle, which led to me losing my rhythm and speed. I will have to sort this out before the Olympic Games,” said the Tuks/HPC athlete. 

Cornel Fredericks, who finished 6th in the 400-hurdles final in Durban, running 49.80s, might compete in Sweden tomorrow to still try to qualify for the Olympic Games.