Luvo Manyonga awaiting World Athletics permission to return to sport

The 33-year-old Olympic silver medalist at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio, Brazil, is currently serving a four-year ban from all forms of the sport, which was handed down by the world athletics governing body in 2020 for a drug violation.

Manyonga has since relocated to the Eastern Cape town, previously known as Queenstown, to start afresh, but required clearance from Athletics South Africa (ASA) and the global governing body before returning to the sport.

"I moved to Queenstown, where there's a college called Queens College, and those people approached me to support them in coaching long jump," said Manyonga.

"They have a new track that is approved by international athletics [body], so they are still waiting for a letter from ASA to approve – because I'm still under a suspension, so they don't want to cause any conflict in the regulations of WADA [World Anti-Doping Agency].

"So, I think by next week they will be getting a letter [confirming] that they can work with me."

Having lost all his earnings from the sport due to his drug addiction, Manyonga insists he has managed to hold onto his treasured Olympic medal and Diamond League trophy.

"My medals and trophies are still [kept] in a safe place, I just need to get them and dust them off, and prepare for the new ones," he noted.

READ: Luvo Manyonga shares comeback strategy for when his ban ends