Relay project paying dividends as SA 4x400m team earns Sports Awards nomination

The team is nominated alongside the Proteas men’s Test cricket side and the Golf RSA Eisenhower team in a highly competitive category. 

The winners will be announced in Sun City on Sunday, 23 August.

Their nomination follows a bronze-medal performance at the World Athletics Championships in Tokyo, which ended South Africa’s nine-year wait for a medal in the event.

Earlier this year, the team also claimed silver at the World Relay Championships in Botswana, and Sepeng believes the nomination is a fitting reward for the athletes’ commitment and hard work.

"All this shows is that the relay project has made a big impact, and these athletes really deserve it."

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The South African athletics legend says he is not surprised by the recognition and always believed it was only a matter of time before the men’s 4x400m relay team received national recognition.

"Both of the relay teams got medals at the World Relay Championships so the momentum is strong, and this nomination is therefor no surprise because it was always just a matter of time."

Sepeng says South Africa once had very little relay culture, with baton-exchange mistakes often costing the country medals at major championships.

The 1996 Olympic 800m silver medallist explained to SABC Sport that ASA made a deliberate effort to build a proper relay structure, focusing on planning, teamwork, and technical preparation.

Together with former ASA president Aleck Skosana, Sepeng helped launch the relay project, which has now become one of South Africa’s strongest medal prospects at events such as the Olympic Games, Commonwealth Games, and World Championships.