Earlier today, South Africa’s Akani Simbine clinched the men’s 100m title rather ceremoniously. Seeing as he’s talk of the town now, Simbine went into the sprinting events as an underdog. However, he continued his win streak over former world champions and America’s power duo Christian Coleman and Fred Kerley. This was the former African record holder’s first performance outside home soil, which will also be a significant springboard for his Paris dreams to take fruition.

Now, before entering the Shanghai/Suzhou Diamond League track and field athletics meet, Akani Simbine confessed to some serious self-doubts. It begets the question as to what keeps him going. Was this champion spirit always prevailing?Was he concerned about other elite athletes, or was there a deeper agony that affected his confidence?

Akani Simbine had an Achilles Heel and always wasn’t this confident

At 30, Akani Simbine is known as one of the most consistent runners on the international stage. And recently ran 100m in 10.01s, only 0.03 ahead of the World Indoor 60m champion, Coleman, and Tokyo Olympics silver medalist Kerley who finished at 10.11. Before entering the 2020-21 Tokyo Olympics, Akani Simbine told Olympics.com, “I struggled with self-belief a lot, and now I believe in myself, my talent and everything that is in me that can make me the best version of myself. I don’t suffer from that anymore, and I am thankful for the journey of believing that you can do so many great things.”

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Simbine made tremendous progress since initially gaining notice in South Africa in 2012 when he established the national junior record with 10.19s. During his high school years, he frequently lost races to other children. But soon found potential in his natural speed while playing football. “I was always the kid where they would kick the ball, and Akani must run after it, and no-one is going to catch him,” he shared. It’s only upon his shift to track and field that he realized what needed to change: “The most challenging thing I’ve had to overcome was my mind and not believing I can be the best.” All the while, his records also superseded his hesitation and self doubt.

Track record agrees with the sprinter’s indefatigable spirit

At the Tokyo Olympics, Akani Simbine became only the second South African sprinter to go under 10 seconds in the 100 meters, finishing fourth overall. Reggie Walker was the last South African sprinter to achieve this feat at the 1908 London Olympics. Simbine has dipped below the 10-s mark over 30 times since first recording it as a University of Pretoria student in 2015. Before the Rio 2016 Olympic Games, he set a South African record of 9.89 seconds, which ranked sixth fastest in the world that year.

Since his breakthrough in 2016, he has maintained his rank in the nation’s top ten fastest sprinters in the short sprint category. Simbine took the bronze medal in the 2023 World Championships in Budapest, Hungary, with a lightning-fast pace of 9.97 seconds, surprising several top American competitors. Now, it looks like his exceptional track and field skills will once again pose a threat to rivals for the title at the Summer Olympics in Paris.