Record-breaker Bayanda Walaza just can’t help himself

Olympian, Bayanda Walaza, has battered yet another record in the space of just a week.

The 19-year-old ran 20.08sec in the men’s 200m to smash the under-20 record.

Just last week, he did the same in the 100m by blasting the age-group mark to 9.99.

At a bitterly cold University of Johannesburg Stadium, the Olympic silver medalist put on yet another blazing hot performance and would not be distracted by the side shows.

“I believe once you’re fast you don’t have to complain about anything,” he said.

“You cannot control how the weather is you know so it is better to make it work for you because if you start saying about the weather I think you might start to doubt yourself because I know most of us, we’re trying to run for best times.”

Walaza and his coach have committed to competing in the 100m and 200m sprints at the national championships in Potchefstroom next month.

Walaza now gears up to face Karabo Letebele at the South African junior championships, a sprinter who recently defeated Kenya’s Ferdinand Omanyala at the ASA Grand Prix in Pretoria. Written by Ntsako Mkhari