South African teenage sprinting sensations Bayanda Walaza (18) and Bradley Nkoana (19) are through to the 100m final of the U20 World Championships in Peru as they look to capitalise on their momentum from the 2024 Paris Olympics.
Both were part of the 4x100m relay side that won silver at the Games earlier this month. While Walaza won his semi-final in a time of 10:33 to qualify third fastest for the final, Nkoana was quicker and qualified second fastest in 10:30, despite finishing second in his semi-final behind Thailand's Puripol Boonson.
The final will take place at 01:47 (SA time) on Thursday morning. There is also South African representation in the final of the women's 100m, which takes place 01:30 (SA time) and will see Viwe Jingqi compete out of lane 9.
On Tuesday night, meanwhile, South Africa bagged a silver medal when JL van Rensburg finished second in the men's shot-put with a personal best throw of 20.74m.Bayanda Walaza makes it look easy ??The #Paris2024 silver medallist wins his heat in the Men's 100m to progress at the World Athletics U20 Championships ???