On Sunday, 6 June, the South African 400m-hurdles champion, Wenda Nel, impressed when she ran 55.25s, finishing third at the FBK Games in Hengelo, the Netherlands.

The Tuks athlete's time is again faster than the Olympic qualifying standard. Femke Bol (Netherlands) won in 54.33s, with Anna Ryzhykova (Ukraine) second in 54.59s. 

Nel admits to having a slight case of the jitters before she raced.

"It was the first time since 2019 that I raced internationally. I was not sure what to expect. In the past, every time I raced in Europe, my first race tended to be a 'touch and go affair'. It feels to me as if it is the start of a new season. What happened in South Africa does not count for anything.

"Overall, I am satisfied with my performance. I executed my stride pattern to perfection. I purposely started off conservatively. My granddad always advises me to keep something left in the 'tank' for when it matters. It was sound advice. We raced against a headwind in the back straight, so I made sure to conserve my energy. The last 100 metres was hard, but I had enough left in my legs for one final surge.

Nel's next race is on Thursday when she competes in the Diamond League Meeting in Florence. 

According to the Tuks athlete, she will have to be at her best. Three of her rivals already dipped under 55 seconds this season. Ryzhykova and Sara Petersen (Denmark) are former Olympic medallists, while the 21-year-old Bol is a former European junior champion. Nel's best time for the season is 55.16s.

"If I can execute my race to perfection and have enough left to attack the last hurdle, I could come close to running a sub-55s race. But for now, it is more important to be consistent."  

Akani Simbine (100 metres) and Zakhiti Nene (400 metres) are the other two South Africans who will compete in Florence.

Gift Leotlela of TuksAthletics, will be racing the 100 metres on Wednesday in Marseille. Last week in France in his first European race, he finished third in a time of 10.19s. Arthur Cisse (Ivory Coast) won in 10.11s. 

Leotlela said he was slightly caught off guard.

"The 'gun' went off. The next thing, we were crossing the finish line. It was so quick. Immediately afterwards, I asked myself what just happened.

"I was slightly slow out of the 'blocks' while Cisse was not. It meant I ended up chasing him. It did not help that my legs were not responding when I tried to catch up. But what happened, happened. I have taken some positives from my performance. I know now what I need to work on to be faster."

The South African shot put champion, Kyle Blignaut (Tuks), is competing this evening at the Memoriál Josefa Odložila in Prague, as is Jason van Rooyen (shot put), Berend Koekemoer (400m), Jo-Ane van Dyk (javelin), Thando Dlodlo (100m) and Tiaan Kleynhans (110m-hurdles).