Wayde van Niekerk said he was feeling good, happy and physically strong after breezing through his 400m heat on day one of the Athletics South Africa (ASA) National Championships in Potchefstroom on Thursday.
Van Niekerk ran a heat-winning time of 45.99sec, ahead of promising young star Zakithi Nene (46.37sec).
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"I feel comfortable," Van Niekerk said.
"The lane draw was a bit uncomfortable, but I tried to do the best I can and I crossed the line feeling comfortable, so I’m happy.
"Physically, I’ve been doing quite well and feeling strong. I’ve been putting in the hard work and I’m just trying to put my best foot forward every time I have an opportunity.
"I’ve never been gone, but there was just a lot of hard work that needed to be done behind the scenes. A lot of you guys forgot the fact that I’m still an athlete, but I’m here.
"The hard work has never stopped. it’s just about getting my momentum back again."
The 2016 Olympic gold medallist and 400m world record-holder said the weekend’s races were more about growing and getting back to peak mental and physical fitness.
The 30-year-old has had a torrid time since his unfortunate ACL injury in 2017 while playing touch rugby, which ripped away years of track dominance.
But Van Niekerk's confidence was creeping back from the middle of last year, especially after the disappointment of not completing the SA Champs in Cape Town.
In July, he told News24 that he saw himself as a "43.0 guy", a clear message to the 400m field that he is aiming to better his world record of 43.03 that no one has come close to since 2016 in Rio.
Last year, he clocked 44.58sec in Atlanta and 44.97sec in Oregon. Later
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