JOHANNESBURG – Being one of the trailblazers of South African athletics seems to come naturally to Akani Simbine.
On Friday when the Tuks athlete outsprinted Justin Gatlin to win the 100 metres at the Diamond League in Doha, it was the third time this season that he set a first in South African athletics.
No other local sprinter has yet been able to win the short sprint at a Diamond League meeting.
Simbine is also the first local sprinter to run two sub-10-second 100m races on the same day, and the first to run a sub-10 100m and sub-20 200m on the same day.
Judging by Simbine’s performances so far, it might not be far-fetched to predict that he is capable of winning a medal at the World Championships in London in August.
The Tuks athlete’s progress as a sprinter over the last six years is remarkable. In 2012, he set a new South African junior record of 10.19.
Here is @AkaniSimbine as he draws away from a strong field to take the 100m in 9.99 into -1.2m/sec in Doha, sixth sub 10 this season pic.twitter.com/Ouk5OabOLj
— Costas Goulas (@lsabre) May 5, 2017
Except for 2013, he has managed to improve his time each year. In 2014, his best time was 10.02, in 2015 he ran 9.97 and last year he ran 9.89. His best time so far this season is 9.92.
Simbine’s coach Werner Prinsloo views 2012 as his breakthrough year. “When Akani ran that 10.19, it changed my life as a coach. It was not only the time he ran, but more importantly the build-up to the race.
What a photo finish, we are all so proud of you @AkaniSimbine @ElsieSimbine @AbigailVisagie_ @adidasZA #hpcsponsoredathlete pic.twitter.com/j19zXUg6mi
— hpc (@hpcRSA) May 5, 2017
“I realised that Akani was not powerful enough as a sprinter, so I specifically changed his programme to include more strength training. We were doing so for about three months before he set a new national junior record. Running 10.19 was a massive improvement as his previous best was about 10.49.
“The next milestone for Akani was in 2013 when he started competing in Europe. Up to then, I was the one who taught him everything he knew about sprinting. Once he started racing internationally, he became a student of sprinting and started to learn from the other athletes.
South Africa's @AkaniSimbine lays it down to take the 100m win at #DohaDL in 9.99 with -1.2 wind! pic.twitter.com/ZWM1qGw2a7
— IAAF (@iaaforg) May 5, 2017
“I always say that training is training – for an athlete to be successful, he needs to learn how to run. That started happening for Akani in 2013. Sprinting will never just be about running as fast as you can when the starter’s gun goes.”
Prinsloo considers last year as the third breakthrough moment in Simbine becoming a world-class sprinter. “We realised that we needed to work on Akani’s start as internationally, that was where he was losing races.
His top speed was never a problem. I consider it to be on par with the likes of Asafa Powell, but he lost out big time over the first 20 metres.
“Akani’s start is now one of the best. He proved it at last year’s Olympic final in Rio where his reaction time out of the blocks was the fastest. If Akani has a good start, there are very few sprinters who will be able to beat him.”
Great way to start the season 💎💫🙏 @ Doha https://t.co/y3BKsiDpAk
— Akani Simbine (@AkaniSimbine) May 5, 2017
Prinsloo said that going forward, it will all be about marginal gains for the Tuks sprinter. “For him to become a consistent 9.90 sprinter, we will have to work on small, specific details. The challenge for me as a coach will be good planning.
“Because Akani trains and races at such a high intensity, it is important to make sure that he takes proper breaks from time to time in order for his body to recover.”
Prinsloo emphasised that the 200 metres is important to him. “I realised during the South African Championships that we still need to work on Akani’s endurance for him to be able to run consistently good times in the 200 metres.
“In Potchefstroom by the time he had to run the 200 metres final, he didn’t have much left in his tank.”