South Africa’s sprinters enjoyed a productive weekend on the Diamond League circuit, with Sinesipho Dambile, Gift Leotlela, Akani Simbine and Zakithi Nene all making their mark across meetings in Lausanne and Silesia.
Dambile set the tone in Lausanne on Friday, claiming silver in the men’s 200m in 19.98 seconds as Botswana’s Olympic champion Letsile Tebogo won in 19.87.
The Commonwealth Games champion dipped under 20 seconds for the fourth time this season and secured his fifth Diamond League podium of the campaign, strengthening his position at the top of the 200m standings ahead of next month’s series final in Brussels.
“It’s my first time here in Lausanne and I really can’t complain,” Dambile said. “I had a lot of fun, especially considering I haven’t trained a lot since the Commonwealth Games, so I’m very happy to see myself progressing like this.”
That momentum continued into Sunday’s meeting in Silesia, where Leotlela and Simbine both advanced to the men’s 100m final after impressive heats.
Leotlela clocked 9.92 seconds to finish second in his heat behind eventual winner Oblique Seville, having already posted a season’s best 9.91 earlier in the campaign.
He followed that with 9.95 in the final to finish fifth, while Simbine, who had also set a season’s best in the heats, crossed the line seventh in 9.96.
Seville claimed the Silesia title in 9.83, with American Kenneth Bednarek taking silver in 9.87 and his compatriot Christian Coleman third in 9.93.
The performances by Leotlela and Simbine nevertheless underlined South Africa’s sprinting depth, with both breaking 10 seconds in a Diamond League final.
Nene then completed the South African medal haul in Silesia by taking bronze in the men’s 400m in 44.37 seconds.
Botswana’s Collen Kebinatshipi won in a meeting-record 43.59, with American Rai Benjamin second in 43.83.
The results rounded off a strong weekend for South African sprinting, with Dambile’s 200m consistency complemented by three sub-10 performances from Leotlela and Simbine in Silesia and a 400m podium for Nene.
