SA champion Zeney van der Walt ready to challenge on world stage

Van der Walt won gold at last year's African Senior Championships and the SA Senior Championships and has now cast her eyes on a podium finish in Budapest, Hungary in August this year.

"I am excited about what is to come in the 2023 season. On top of my goals is to defend my senior national title and hopefully go on to win a medal at the World Championships in Budapest," said the 22-year-old.

"I want to compete against the best senior women in the world, and I cannot wait to see what will happen. We are working hard and training hard."

The qualifying standard for the women’s 400m hurdles set by the World Athletics for the World Championships is 54.90 seconds, and van der Walt is not bothered by the stringent criteria.

"The times are fast throughout the world, and it is only fair to also make the qualifying time for the world championships fast. The 400m hurdles [times] in the world are crazy, and it will push us to run fast times and get close to the podium," she added.

Last month, she won the Athletics South Africa top female athlete of the year award, which she dedicated to her coach of almost a decade.

"This year, we are celebrating nine years of working together, and she is the best coach in the world for me. We will continue to work together for many years to come," said van der Walt.

"She does a lot for me on and off the track and puts in a lot of hard work in training, and I am grateful to have her as my coach."

Van der Walt also won her first medal on the global stage, bagging bronze at the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham last year, and will be hoping to compete at the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris.