Athletics
Carlo Jonkerman, Special to ESPN 6y

Looking beyond Wayde and Akani

It's no secret that South African sprinting is in renaissance at the moment, and Thando Roto is one young star aiming for it to continue for many years yet.

While Wayde van Niekerk was winning 400m gold (again) and 200m bronze, and Akani Simbine reaching a second successive global final at the World Championships in London it was easy to forget that South Africa had a third super-fast sprinter at the event in Thando Roto. All things being equal though, 2017 may well be the last time the 22-year-old flies under radar of the general public.

USAIN'S DEPUTY READY FOR WORK

Come March 2018 the well-travelled pocket rocket -- born in Dimbaza in the Eastern Cape, but educated in Settlers in southern Limpopo and at the University of Pretoria's sports school in Gauteng -- will make his way across the country looking to find similar gems like himself as the 'chief scout' of the Puma School of Speed.

Officially Roto is the Vice Principal of the five-leg track and field series, which caters for high school students aged 14-19, having ostensibly been appointed by the great Usain Bolt.

"Actually it's a privilege firstly being part of a big brand like Puma and representing it. My role will be to inspire young and upcoming athletes and I see it as an honour and I'm really looking forward to it."

Roto, who earned his 'The Rock' moniker in high school for his mentality about training and strong build, will be leaning on his own traits while talent-spotting at the five venues where the Puma School of Speed will take place from 20 January to 3 March.

"I'll be looking for athletes with a great attitude, who show good sportsmanship, passion for athletics and great characters. Not forgetting, they'll also have to be the fastest!"

GETTING A FAST START

Roto's own rise to being among the fastest ever produced in South Africa actually began at the venue which will be hosting the penultimate 2018 Puma School of Speed meeting (on 26 February), the Dal Josaphat Athletics Stadium in Paarl.

"The first time I realised I had speed was in 2010, during the SA Schools Championships in Paarl. I made the 100m semifinals and finished sixth in the 200m, and while I didn't win it was then that I realised that I can do this as a career... I've never looked back since."

In truth, persistent hamstring injuries initially slowed the softly-spoken Roto's progress, but come 2017 he found himself up to speed with the best around.

So much so, that it became a matter of 'when, and where' rather than if he would reach the ultimate landmark for a 100m sprinter.

JOINING THE ELITE

And so it was that on 18 March Roto became the fifth South African 100m sprinter ever to dip under 10 seconds, by running 9.95 to make him the second-fastest South African ever behind Akani Simbine who actually beat him on the day but who's 9.89 national record was set in 2016.

In so doing, Roto joined the almost-forgotten trailblazer Simon Magakwe (who ran 9.98 in 2014), and his contemporaries Simbine, Wayde van Niekerk and Henricho Bruintjies -- who served as Puma School of Speed Vice Principal this year.

The first person Roto phoned after clocking his first official sub-10 was his mother, who needed somewhat of a settling-in period to take in her son's achievement.

"When I told her she couldn't believe it, in fact she was out of words. Then hours later she called me back to congratulate me properly," Roto remembers with a laugh.

That achievement guaranteed him a spot in Team South Africa for the IAAF World Championships in London, and it proved to be an enlightening experience -- even though he had previously competed at the IAAF World Junior Championships in Eugene in 2014.

"Overall the experience in London was great. Even though I false-started [during the heats] it was a learning curve. The other thing that I learned from being around the other athletes was that they're just like us, they do things like us and it opened my eyes to the psychological element. The lesson is that if you work hard you can be just like them."

ANTICIPATION BEGINS FOR NEW NATIONAL SERIES

It goes without saying that high-quality competition will also bridge the gap between on-the-rise talent and genuine world stars, and it was that in mind that at the beginning of December Roto keenly followed the confirmation by Athletics South Africa that they would once again host a prestigious nationwide series of track and field meetings in 2018.

Apart from the purse of R1.365-million, the three-leg ASA Athletix Grand Prix will also look to bring world class athletes back to South Africa -- even if it isn't Roto's favourite Yohan Blake -- and give the local athletes the chance to test themselves against each other in more than the national championships or various inter-varsity competitions.

"It's a great initiative by ASA to bring back track meetings to South Africa," enthuses Roto. "Hosting such international events will give us a platform before we head to Europe every year. It will also be a great platform to bring through the younger talent."

With the ASA Athletix Grand Prix taking in Ruimsig, TuksAthletics and Dal Josaphat stadiums, Roto will get to compete at two of the most relevant venues of his burgeoning career.

"The TuksAthletics Stadium [where he ran his sub-10] is definitely my favourite track locally. I've only competed for two years in international events and haven't experienced that many tracks, but hopefully I'll soon be able to say where my favourite international track is too..."

If Roto builds on the year he is about to finish then that 'soon' might be 'very soon'; but he knows that even a sprinter can only take things one step at a time.

"Right now, I'm focussing on preparing for next year [under the watchful eye of his coach Hennie Kriel]. We'll see how the preparations go before deciding on Commonwealth Games and events like that but I'm definitely hoping for an even better 2018."

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