Akani Simbine delivered in style on Thursday, scorching to a national record as he bagged South Africa's first medal on day seven of the World Student Games in Gwangju.

Having set a Universiade record of 10.00 seconds in the men's 100m semifinals, Simbine raced to victory in 9.97 in the final, securing the gold medal as he equalled fellow Tuks athlete, Henricho Bruintjies' SA record.

He was well clear of the rest of the field, with Kemarley Brown of Jamaica grabbing the silver medal in 10.12.  "I'm very happy with the run," said the 21-year-old Tuks athlete.

"I just kept focussed and told myself to get through all my phases, and when I get to the 60 (metres mark) I know I'm going to power through.

"I told myself to stay relaxed and get through the race. I didn't focus much on the time, I just told myself to go and win a medal. That was my goal."

Fredriech Pretorius ended 11th in the gruelling two-day decathlon with 7 174 points.

Meanwhile, on the football field, the SA men's team put up a brave fight against giants Brazil but eventually went down in a 2-1 defeat in their quarter-final clash. The SA men will face Uruguay in the classification playoffs for fifth to eighth positions on Saturday.

In the pool, Doug Erasmus was eliminated in the penultimate round of the men's 50m freestyle when he finished 14^th with a PB of 22.67.

Teaghan Gauche, in second place overnight, struggled in the second round of the men's golf tournament, shooting an eight-over-par 80 as he slipped to 23rd place. Jason Smith was in a tie for 26th position and Andrew van der Knaap was lying 38th overall.

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