The showpiece events of day two of the African Athletics Championships the men’s and women’s 100m finals, to be staged on Thursday, at the King’s Park Athletics Stadium, in Durban.
Hosts South Africa are strongly represented in both events, with national record holder Akani Simbine leading the charge in the men’s dash. He was content to finish in second place during Wednesday night’s semi-finals, but he looked to be holding back, which bodes well for the final proper.
Simbine will be joined in the blocks by two compatriots, in the form of Gift Leotlela and Thando Roto. In the women’s draw, South Africa’s Carina Horn plucked out a season’s best time in her semi-final, but she may have to dip below that too, to keep pace with the red-hot Murielle Ahoure of the Ivory Coast.
The world’s fastest woman of 2016, Ahoure barely broke a sweat in her semi-final, and her recently set African record may be in danger again if the conditions are in her favour. Durban may have been cold and breezy on day one, but the sun made a welcome return on the second morning, which bodes well for the afternoon sprints.
On what will be a busy afternoon/evening session in Durban, there will also be significant interest in the men’s discus final, with Dewald van Heerden featuring, as well as the semi-finals of the men’s 400m. Shaun de Jager, Pieter Conradie and Thapelo Phora are flying the flag in the absence of world champion Wayde van Niekerk.
The men’s semi-finals in the 800m will also be staged this afternoon - Independet Media