Team SA's World Athletics Championships shot put goal in Hungary

SPORT

When Team South Africa launch their medal hunt at the World Athletics Championships in Bupadest, Hungary today (Saturday, August 19), the first gong could come from an unlikely event – shot put.

Shot putters Kyle Blignaut and Burger Lambrechts Jr. will start their qualification on day one of the competition, and if they progress beyond the first round, the pair will line up in the final that is scheduled for the evening on the same day.

Blignaut is hoping history could repeat itself for him to lead South Africa into celebrations on the opening day at a major event.

Five years ago, the 23-year-old gave Teams South Africa a solid start with a gold medal at the Under-20 World Athletics Championships in Nairobi, Kenya.

During Team SA’s send-off event in Kempton Park, Johannesburg early this week Bliganut told City Press:

Bliganut believes he gained valuable experience from the Olympics and the previous senior World Athletics Championships in Oregon, US last year.

“I have done both the Olympics and the World Champs so, when I go out there, I plan to perform as best as I can. 

“But I still understand that I am 23 and still young in the sport of shot put, I’ll probably be the youngest at the [Budapest] finals.

It’s still a bit of a learning curve to get a medal at senior level. I feel like these championships will be the steppingstone and next year’s Olympics [in Paris, France] will hopefully be a medal.

Blignaut believes field events in South Africa are growing in a space where the sprinters always hog the limelight.

“If you look at the throwers [shot put, discus and javelin] at junior and youth ranks, we have some good athletes coming through. I think it’s all because of coaching and the exposure you [the media] are giving to the field events.”

In the build-up to Budapest, Blignaut posted a solid heave of 20.83 in Norway in June.

Bliganut is in Group B, while Lambrechts is Group A.

Should Blignaut and Lambrechts fall short, the attention will shift to the sprinters where Akani Simbine, Shaun Maswanganyi and Benjamin Richardson will start their campaign in the 100m with the final of the short dash is set for Sunday evening.