The Tuks sprinter, Benjamin Richardson (who is a TuksSport High School learner-athlete part of the TuksAthletics Academy), will race to win when he competes in the men’s 100 metres at the 2021 World Athletics U20 Championships in Nairobi, Kenya.

"The goal is always gold. It does not matter where or against whom I race. I am not running to win silver or bronze. All I see is gold," said the 17-year old sprinter.

This might sound slightly arrogant, but Richardson is quick to explain that it is all about being confident.

"When I was younger, I would more often lose than win. It taught me the importance of remaining humble. You are only as good as your last race. My grandparents also played an important role to keep me grounded.

"Even now, when I win, I keep quiet. This is because I prefer to 'shock' people with my performance, not with words."

Richardson definitely had his golden moments this season. He won the 100 metres and 200 metres during the South African Junior Championships. Another "golden" moment was finishing second in the 200 metres during the national senior championships. Wayde van Niekerk was the only one who could outsprint him.

"For some reason, I was not scared to race against Wayde. I thought to myself, it is only Wayde I will try and win. Knowing that I probably won't. Getting to race against Wayde showed me where I should be in the future. It is going to take hard work."

In June, he clocked 10.17s over 100 metres. Only South Africa's Olympians - Akani Simbine, Gift Leotlela and Shaun Maswanganyi - had been faster. His time ranks him jointly as the 6th fastest on the World Athletics top list for under-20 athletes. His best time of 20.63s over 200 metres ranks him 14th.

The TuksSport High School learner-athlete is 1.90 metres tall, which means he is quite a bit longer than the average 100-metre sprinter. It is often argued that "big men" are slower out of the starting blocks. Richardson disagrees.

"My start is not too bad, but it can be better. The goal is to constantly refine my technique to gain that extra hundredth of a second. I had watched quite a few videos of Usain Bolt when he was at his best. So I definitely picked up some pointers.”

 For the record, Bolt is 1.95 metres tall.

 "I want to be my own man when it comes to sprinting. I take note of what is happening in international sprinting, but I don't try to emulate anyone. In the end, it is about what I can do and how hungry I am to achieve my goals."

The other Tuks athletes including TuksSport High School learner-athletes competing at the upcoming World Athletics U20 Champs are Mihlali Xhityeni (100m and 4x100m-relay), Sinesipho Dambile (200m and 4x100m-relay), Andre Erasmus (400m-hurdles and 4x400m-relay), Viwe Jinqi (200m and 4x100m-relay), Marione Fourie (100m-hurdles and 4x100m-relay) and Kayla van den Berg (100m-hurdles).

The 2021 World Athletics U20 Championships are scheduled to take place from 18 to 22 August at the Moi International Sports Center in Kasarani, Nairobi.