Sunday Times

Simbine chuffed with London sprint performanc­es

- By DAVID ISAACSON

● Akani Simbine fired two warning shots in the space of just 65 minutes at the London stadium yesterday.

First he blitzed the 100m to finish second in his heat in 9.93sec and then he went 9.94 to take third place in the final of the Anniversar­y Games.

The only sprinter more consistent than the Commonweal­th Games champion was American world leader Ronnie Baker, who won Simbine’s heat and then the final in identical times of 9.90.

Briton Zharnel Hughes, winner of the other heat in 9.97, was second in 9.93 in a tight race where just 0.08sec separated the first six. Jamaican Yohan Blake was fourth in 9.95.

Simbine, South Africa’s top performer on the opening day of this two-day Diamond League event, was chuffed with his performanc­e. “That for me seems like I’m consistent with my times right now and I’m at a point where my body is getting faster and I’m peaking, so I’m really happy with where I’m at.”

His 9.93 is his second-fastest time outside South Africa, second only to the 9.89 national record he set in Hungary two years ago.

Simbine and coach Werner Prinsloo had targeted a late surge for 2018. In 2016 and 2017 they opened their campaigns in March with sub-10 performanc­es, but this year they’ve held back, dipping below 10 for the first time only in June.

“It’s coming together how we planned it,” said Simbine, fifth at the 2016 Rio Olympics as well as the 2017 World Championsh­ips, also at the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park.

“We were planning to peak at African champs and it’s two weeks before African champs and I’m running my season’s best.”

With no World Championsh­ips or Olympics this year, the target has been the continenta­l showpiece in Nigeria from August 1-5.

“That’s my goal, to finally get the title of the fastest man in Africa.”

In the women’s javelin, 2016 Olympic silver medallist Sunette Viljoen finished a disappoint­ing sixth yesterday, her 60.34m being more than 5m behind victor Huihui Lyu of China.

Viljoen, who ended her 2017 season prematurel­y because of a lower back problem, is struggling with a pain that “comes and goes”.

“I can’t open up properly . . . so I literally just throw with my upper body. ”

Just weeks ago Viljoen was unable to lift a javelin. “It’s tough. I don’t like to finish where I’m finishing,” said the 34-year-old.

I’m consistent with my times right now and I’m at a point where my body is getting faster Akani Simbine Sprinter

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