Bradley Nkoana: It’s time to rise to the challenge or step aside

He kicked off his campaign at the ASA Grand Prix second leg, clocking 10.16 seconds to finish third at the University of Johannesburg Athletics Stadium two weeks ago.

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However, he fell short of expectations at the ASA Age Group Championships at Green Point Stadium in Cape Town over the weekend, where he was the favourite but settled for second place in the men’s Under-23 100m final with a time of 10.33 seconds.

His struggles continued in the 200m final, where he placed sixth in 21.03 seconds.

With rising talents like Karabo Letebele and Bayanda Walaza posting impressive times, Nkoana faces stiff competition to retain his spot in South Africa’s 4x100m relay team.

''That was a lesson for me. I know what I need to work on and I know what lies ahead because people are running fast. I need to step up. I know I am a bronze medallist and I need to live up to the name,'' said Nkoana.

With the Senior World Championships scheduled to take place in Tokyo, Japan, later this year, Nkoana must lower his times in the 100m and 200m events to meet the qualification standards of 10.00 seconds and 20.16 seconds, respectively.

''That's a tough one, I have been in the same position as last year, I went to Juniors and I came fourth and I was under pressure to qualify for the World Juniors. I had to trust the plan and trust my coach. I know things will take time, but if I have set the tone from now. I know that things will start getting better,'' added Nkoana.

Nkoana refuses to dwell on past achievements and is focused on pushing his limits beyond last year’s Olympic silver medal victory with the 4x100m relay team in Paris. He knows that stepping up his performance is essential to securing a spot on the relay team for Tokyo in September.

''I'm in a good space, I am quite happy, more focused. I don't want to be an athlete that is complacent, I want more and I want to be the best,'' he expressed.

Nkoana is dealing with a recurring knee injury that constantly challenges his season plans, but he remains confident that he has it under control.

Nkoana had been eager to join his friend Bayanda Walaza at Tshwane University of Technology, where Walaza enrolled in January.

However, his transfer from North West University fell through at the last minute due to undisclosed reasons.

Coach Paul Gorries played a pivotal role in persuading the Mabopane-born youngster to stay instead of returning home.