Pillay picks Simbine, relay team to medal at world championships
'This is the best team that ASA could put together'
Former sprint ace Geraldine Pillay has predicted that one of the relay teams and Akani Simbine will secure a podium finish at the World Athletics Championships in Oregon in the US from July 15-24.
Athletics SA unveiled a strong 40-member final national team and their sprint contingent has a lot of promise heading to the world champs.
Olympic 100m finalist Simbine and 400m world record holder Wayde van Niekerk are the headline acts, supported by the cast of 200m national champion Sinesipho Dambile, Luxolo Adams and Shaun Maswanganyi.
Carina Horn will lead the charge on behalf of the female sprinters as she hopes to re-establish herself on the world stage after a two-year hiatus. Miranda Coetzee, 400m African champion, and talented middle-distance runner Prudence Sekgodiso beef up the team.
Pillay is happy with the team that the selectors put together and is confident that the sprinters have the potential to have an impressive campaign.
“This is the best team that ASA could put together under the circumstances where we have athletes that have been injured and haven't competed for a very long time,” said Pillay.
“I'm happy to see Adams there in the 200m, he has shown he's ready to 'bamba with the big boys'. We've seen Akani winning in the Diamond League, Carina coming back to women sprinting. It was also good to see Wayde finishing a race and we have a lot of relay teams.
“I do think it is a good team. It's a mixture of experience and youth athletes. Going to Oregon is going to take a lot of adjustment but I think with the planning from ASA, athletes will acclimatise. I'm confident with team SA.”
The national squad includes four relay teams, in the men's 4x100m, mixed 4x400m, and men's and women's 4x400m events. Pillay believes the relay teams have the chance of securing a podium finish and suggested Simbine will come of age in Oregon.
'I think this is the year where our relay teams can medal at the world champs,” said Pillay.
“Akani can medal too. He has flirted with that podium position for so long. I do think that this year is his time. He's a whole lot [more] mature as an athlete, mentally a little bit stronger and physically to go through the rounds to the final and pull off the big one,” she said.