Simbine joins elite sub-10 club

AKANI Simbine went lightning fast in Slovenia on Wednesday night as he became only the second South African sprinter to break the 10-second barrier.

Running into a slight headwind the University of Pretoria student clocked 9.99sec as he won the 100m at a European Permit meet in Velenje, and then admitted afterwards he had been concerned about his start.

“I’m just happy that my start was good because that’s what I was worried about coming into the race,” said Simbine.

“Once I got out and had a good start I put all my phases together,” said Simbine, whose 0.157sec reaction time was the fourth-best of the field.

Had there been a slight tailwind instead of the -0.2 metres per second breeze in his face, Simbine might have equalled or even broken the 9.98 South African record posted by Simon Magakwe in Pretoria last year.

Simbine lifted the SA crown in Stellenbosch in April in the absence of Magakwe, who is serving a two-year ban for a doping offence.

Simbine had threatened to break 10 seconds much of this season.

In the 800m Rynhardt van Rensburg finished second in 1min 45.40sec to qualify for the world championships in Beijing in August.

Simbine became the 105th man on the planet to break 10 seconds since Olympic champion Jim Hines in 1968.

In South African terms, his 9.99 is the fastest beyond the borders of the country, and it’s the fastest lowaltitude effort, ahead of the 10.06 Bruintjies clocked recently.

Simbine and Bruintjies are off to Korea next for the World Student Games, which kick off tomorrow.

Simbine will race only in the 100m, scheduled for Wednesday and Thursday, as he bids to keep the crown in South African hands – compatriot Anaso Jobodwana won the 100m and 200m double at the 2013 Games in Kazan, Russia.

Simbine will pick up the 200m closer to the China showpiece.