South Africa's Walaza fit for Tokyo World Athletics
Reading Time: 2min | Wed. 03.09.25. | 21:07
He, alongside Simbine headline a squad of 49 looking to win their first world championship silverware since the 2017 edition in London
Reigning double U-20 world champion and World University Games gold medalist Bayanda Walaza will be fully fit to participate at the Tokyo 2025 World Championships, his agent has confirmed.
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Walaza had a good start to his Wanda Diamond League final in Zurich, leading early on before clutching his hamstring and limping to the finish line, raising concerns ahead of Saturday, 13 September's global competition.
However, after extensive assessment by his medical team, he has been given the all clear to go on and make his individual debut for South Africa at the World Championships.
“Walaza has undergone extensive assessment by his medical team,” Newton Sports Agency said in a statement. “After careful evaluation and consultation with relevant parties, the decision has been made that he will be fully fit to participate in the upcoming world championships.”
While Walaza may not be considered a real prospect for an individual medal, he is an integral part of the men’s 4x100m relay team, having been part of the outfits that won Olympic silver at Paris 2024 and gold at World Relays in China earlier this year.
The 37.61sec clocked by the South African quartet of Walaza, Akani Simbine, Bradley Nkoana and Sinesipho Dambile in May remains the fastest 4x100m time in the world this year.
Walaza and Simbine headline a South African squad of 49 looking to win their first world championship silverware since the 2017 edition in London, after leaving empty-handed from Doha 2019, Eugene 2022 and Budapest 2023.
After clinching the 100m.and 200m at the World University Games, Walaza set lofty targets for his World Championships debut.
"My goal is getting to the world stage and showing people that South Africa can produce other sprinters (other than Simbine),” Walaza told Olympics.com. “I want to showcase my talent to the world and make sure that I am being recognised by the end of this year.”
Walaza said he hoped to keep some of the established sprinters on their toes and warned that he believed he could snatch a medal if they were to fall into complacency.
“So I will say, my goal is to make sure that I get into the Final and get a medal,” he said. “The future is LA 2028, that's the main goal. Beyond that, my goal is to be the best sprinter for the next decade.”
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