Athletics treat for fans in the city this month

Local followers of field and track athletics as well as visitors to the city will have a rare chance of watching the Athletics SA Senior Championships on their doorstep.

National athletics ruling body, Athletics South Africa (ASA), will stage one of these popular event at the Msunduzi Athletics Stadium from April 18-21. The best track and field athletes in the country will be in Pietermaritzburg for four days.

According to KwaZulu-Natal Athletics (KZNA) media officer and member of the executive Mandla Mngomezulu, hosting the event in Pietermaritzburg means local residents and athletics fans will be able to witness the best athletes in the country in action. He added that both KZNA and the mother body, ASA, are ready.

“It’s all systems go, KZNA is ready, ASA is ready and Pietermaritzburg is waiting with welcoming, open arms for the event and the visitors,” he said.

With the hashtag #Azishe an exciting challenge awaits our South African superheroes in the jostle for the 2024 national titles.

This long-awaited #AthleticsFestival is expected to produce fireworks in what should be a tight contest across all disciplines of the ASA senior track and field, combined events and relay championships.

The four-day programme kicks off with a bang as a total of six finals are due to be held on opening day. There will be intense battles for medals in the women’s discus throw, women’s high jump, men’s javelin throw, women’s 5 000m, women’s shot put and men’s 10 000m.

On the last day, the championships will close with the men’s and women’s 4x100m relays, followed by the 1 500m races in the boys U18, men U20 and senior men’s decathlon.

Aside from senior track and field events, the programme also features combined events (pentathlon, heptathlon and decathlon) with gruelling contests in the U16, U18, U20 and senior age groups.

In addition, 4x100m, 4x200m and 4x400m relay events will be held in preparation for various major global championships to be held later this year, including the World Athletics Relays in the Bahamas, the World Athletics U20 Championships in Peru and the Olympic Games in France.

“As we say, it promises to be lit. The day-to-day programme allows us a smooth build-up from heats to finals,” explained James Moloi, ASA president.

“The performance of our athletes during the three-legged ASA Grand Prix Series has given us an indication of the great times at the championships. We hope that this national contest will be the one [where the level of] performance will make the world sit [up and take notice].”