Bayanda Walaza Explained

Bayanda Walaza
Sport:Athletics
Event:Sprint
Birth Date:9 February 2006
Pb:100m: 10.13 (Pretoria, 2024)
200m: 20.34 (Pretoria, 2024)

Bayanda Walaza (born 9 February 2006) is a South African sprinter.[1] He won silver at the 2024 Paris Olympics as part of South Africa's 4 x 100 metres relay team.[2]

Early life

From Katlehong in Gauteng, he attended Hoërskool Vorentoe and received a scholarship at Curro Hazeldean School in Pretoria.[3] [4] [5]

Career

Walaza runs for Athletics Gauteng North. He won the SA U18 200m title and took silver in the 100m at the Athletics South Africa U18 Championships in Pietermaritzburg in January 2023.[4] He won the bronze medal in the 100m at the African U18 Championships in April 2023 in Zambia.[6]

He ran 10.36 seconds to win the U19 boys 100m race at the Curro Hazeldean Top 14 Athletics Meet which took place at the Pilditch Stadium, Pretoria on 28 January 2024.[4] He won the South Africa U20 Championships over 100 metres in a 10.13 personal best in March 2024.[7] [8] He was runner-up at the South African Championships over 100 metres in April 2024 in a time of 10.27 seconds.[9]

He ran as part of the South African 4x100m relay team which qualified for the 2024 Paris Olympics at the 2024 World Relays Championships in Nassau, Bahamas.[10] In June 2024, he was selected for the South African team for the 2024 Paris Olympics.[11] [12]

On 9 August 2024, Walaza won an Olympic silver medal as part of South Africa's 4 x 100 metres relay team at the Paris Olympics while still only 18 years old, becoming the first South African to win an Olympic medal while still in high school.[13]

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Bayanda Walaza. World Athletics. 21 June 2024.
  2. Web site: Olympic Silver for Curro Hazeldean’s Bayanda Walaza. Supersport Schools Plus. 11 August 2024. 10 August 2024.
  3. Web site: Athletics: Bayanda, making more strides is his career. saschoolsports.co.za. 21 June 2024. 26 April 2024 .
  4. Web site: 'If you trust yourself, then you'll do it' - 17-year-old Walaza runs 10.36 at Schools Meet. Mosibodi Whitehead. February 7, 2024. Thetoprunner. 7 February 2024. 21 June 2024.
  5. Web site: SA's Fastest Teenager: Bayanda Walaza. saschoolsports.co.za. 21 June 2024. 9 August 2024.
  6. Web site: Walaza wins big at Vorentoe Awards as school athletics programme searches for new sponsor. The Top Runner. 21 June 2024. Mosibodi. Whitehead. May 26, 2023.
  7. Web site: Teenage sprinter Bayanda Walaza is the real deal. Citizen.co.za. 21 June 2024. Wesley. Botton. 24 March 2024.
  8. Web site: Records tumble as Walaza runs 10.13 on Day 1 of the ASA U16, U18, U20 Champs. thetoprunner. 21 June 2024. Mosibodi . Whitehead. March 22, 2024.
  9. Web site: South African Champiosnhips. World Athletics. 21 June 2024. 18 April 2024.
  10. Web site: Watch Athletics. Men 4x100m Results - World Athletics Relays Championships 2024. 12 May 2024. 5 May 2024.
  11. Web site: More SA athletes for Paris Olympics announced. SuperSport. 21 June 2024. 19 June 2024.
  12. Web site: Crazy schoolboy runner gets Paris Olympics spot. Businesslive.co.za. 21 June 2024. David. Isaacson. 20 June 2024.
  13. Web site: Olympic Silver for Curro Hazeldean’s Bayanda Walaza. Supersport Schools Plus. 11 August 2024. 10 August 2024.

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