Wayde van Niekerk to decide on retirement after Tokyo

World 400m record holder, Wayde Van Niekerk, says he will only make a decision on whether or not to retire after the World Senior Athletics Championships, which start on Saturday in Tokyo.

Van Niekerk, who will run in the men’s 200m, says his decision will depend on how he performs in both his individual race and the 4x400m relay.

Since suffering a knee injury during a social touch rugby game a few years ago, the 33-year-old has struggled to return to the same form that earned him two world championship medals and an Olympic gold in 2016.

“It’s a tough one. It’s 26 next year, let’s see how this year goes. I am leaning towards looking at what the end of my career looks like but at the end of the day it’s not in my hands, I’m just living it all in God’s hands,” Van Niekerk said.

It’s the World Athletics🏃‍♂️🏃‍♀️Championships week!

So many countries have started making their way to Tokyo 🇯🇵 for the #WorldAthleticsChamps starting this weekend.

The second batch of South African athletes led by Wayde Van Niekerk, departed Johannesburg this afternoon en route… pic.twitter.com/C2SoBSJpip

— Making of Champions (@MakingOfChamps) September 8, 2025

Written by: Ntsako Mukhari