Challenging the stopwatch has become the norm to Wayne Snyman. It is what you do if you are an Olympian wanting to beat the world's best. 

However, the Tuks race walker realises that being fast during training and doing so while racing is not the same thing. That is why he competed at the 2021 International Race Walking Festival in Alytus, Lithuania. He needed to know whether all the long hours he had been put in will pay dividends. 

In March in Dudince, Slovenia, Snyman clocked 1:20.59 during a 20km-race to finish 6th. It was what he needed to do to qualify for the Tokyo Olympic Games.  His best time is 1:20:17. 

To dip 1 hour and 21 minutes over 20km has become sort of a benchmark in an international race walking. During the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio, only 11 athletes managed to do so. 

Snyman was reluctant to commit to any specific time during the 47th International Race Walking Festival. He finished third with a time of 1:23:54.

Tough race, but happy with the result is how Synman described his participation.

"Experience has taught me you don't just 'rock up' and walk 1 hour and 20 minutes. A good result depends on a lot of things. The weather conditions need to be perfect. You need to be in the right mindset and hope that the other athletes are equally eager to race. It is also only once you race that you know whether you are on the right track as far as training is concerned.

"I believe I am in good form, so the aim is to fire on all 'eight cylinders'. If I do, anything is possible."

The one thing that excites Snyman is how consistent his performances had been over the last three years. His worst placing was finishing sixth. In 2019 in the Czech Republic, when he set a personal best time of 1:20.17, he finished second. Last year he won a race in Ireland. 

Being 36 makes the Tuks athlete realise that his days of being an internationally competitive athlete are getting numbered.

"If I want, I could push myself to try and qualify for the Paris Games, but if I am honest, I don't want to. That is why the Tokyo Olympics is so important to me. I owe it to myself to give 110% every day in training or when I race to ensure I am in the best possible shape. I want to feel how it is to race against the best knowing that I can beat them.”