Former UP-Tuks sprinter Anaso Jobodwana will be hoping for it to be third time lucky when he takes on the current world champion, Justin Gatlin, this evening in the 150-metre race during the Athletics Grand Prix-meeting at Tuks.
The former South African record holder over 200 metres said he has only raced against Gatlin twice and both times Gatlin outsprinted him.
“I have to get him before he retires,” Jobodwana said smiling broadly and admitting to being realistically confident of getting one over Gatlin.
“My training has been going well, but I know the type of athlete Justin is. I will have to bring my A-game to the track if I want to have any chance.
“What makes Justin such a good sprinter is his explosiveness out of the blocks. I will have to make sure I stay in touch with him around the bend to have a chance to catch up with him down the straight. If I can beat him, it will be a good confidence booster for the rest of the season.
“The biggest mistake I can make is to put too much pressure on myself. My only focus is going to be on executing the perfect race. Whatever the outcome it will also be important to get what I can from the race and learn,” said the Tuks-athlete who at last week’s Grand Prix-meeting at Ruimsig won the 200 metre in a time of 20.13 metres. It is his fastest time since 2015.
Jobodwana will be pushed by the South African record-holder and former Varsity Athletics star, Akani Simbine, which will aid him in his quest for a fast time.
Although it is Simbine’s first race for the season, over the last two years he has developed the habit of starting his season’s campaign with a sub ten-second race. The Tuks track has become a favourite “hunting ground” for Simbine. During last year’s Gauteng North Championships he has managed to run times of 9.98 seconds and 9.95 seconds on the same day.
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