Akani Simbine has explained the reason behind his decision to avoid placing himself in the same class as Usain Bolt and other legendary sprinters.
South African sprinting sensation Akani Simbine has detailed why he does not want to be named among the greatest sprinters just yet.
The Olympic 4x100m silver medallist is not yet ready to be named alongside the likes of Usain Bolt, Asafa Powell, Justin Gatlin, and Noah Lyles as he eyes greater milestones going forward in his career.
Despite being one of the most consistent sprinters of all time and a former African record holder, he revealed that there are things he wants to achieve first before being recognised as one of the greats.
In an interview with Team South Africa, Akani Simbine revealed that he wants to leave a strong legacy, not just in sports but in every sector in his home country.
Kishane Thompson has embraced a series of firsts, from seeing snow and touching it to making his indoor debut in Astana.
He believes that South Africa has the potential to excel in sports, the economy, and technology among many other projects if they put their best foot forward.
“I don’t see myself as that you know, because my story is still being written but there’s two parts of that, I know I’m one of them, I know I’m part of that story and list but now I’m not trying to kind of like get lost in that,” Akani Simbine said.
“There’s still so much that I want to do with my running and with how I am as a sprinter and how I show South Africa that we can be great and we can compete against the world. that’s my whole thing, in every facet, we have the resources and we can be anything.”
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Meanwhile, Simbine is undoubtedly one of the sprinters who paved the way for professional sprinting in Africa.
Last season was a mixed for the South African ace who kick started his Olympic campaign with the 150m race at the Curro Podium Final and then later extended the winning streak to the South African Championships.
Akani Simbine then won the 100m at the Diamond League Meeting in Suzhou before competing at the World Athletics Relays in the Bahamas.
After that, Akani Simbine competed at the Diamond League Meeting in Oslo, the Meeting Madrid 2024, Gyulai István Memorial, Hungarian Athletics Grand Prix and then the Diamond League Meeting in London before heading to the Paris Olympic Games where he finished fourth in the men’s 100m final.
Akani Simbine also anchored the South African 4x100m relay team to a silver medal behind Team Canada. After the Olympic Games, he raced twice before rounding up his season at the Diamond League Meeting final in Brussels where he finished fifth.
He now hopes to build up from where he left from as he looks to impress at this season and also make the cut to the 2025 World Championships in Tokyo, Japan.
