OBAKENG MELETSE
Teenager Bayanda Walaza might have wobbled his way through primary school on track, but with Paris in sight and career aspirations in tow, the young sprinter will bring a balanced approach to his goals in the next few months.
Walaza was named in TeamSA for the Olympic Games, starting in less than two weeks, where he will compete in the men’s 4x100m relay. The 18-year-old has put the world of athletics on notice with his sizzling pace propelling him to be the fastest teenager in South Africa, with an impressive time of 10.13sec in the 100m event at the SA Junior Championships earlier this year.
Also earlier this year at the World Athletics Relays in the Bahamas, Walaza helped SA qualify for the Olympics, alongside teammates Benjamin Richardson, Bradley Nkoana and Akani Simbine in 38.08. The leading time at the event was the US’s 37.40.
The matriculant was honoured in a capping ceremony at Curro Hazeldean High School in Pretoria yesterday, before he embarked on a journey to represent the nation in Paris. With his cheerful peers in full attendance and proud mother, Tholiwe, filled with tears of joy, the stage still didn’t seem big enough for the confident teenager.
The former Hoerskool Vorentoe pupil joined Curro on a scholarship, and he has had to find a good balance between academics and his career. But much like he has found a way to make his awkward running technique work, he is not fazed about falling behind with his schoolwork.
The preliminary exams are due to start soon, and with his packed schedule, Walaza will be doing a lot of online classes as he keeps in touch with his aspirations to acquire a logistics qualification.
“Curro is doing a lot for me,” he explained.
“I will write the prelims when I come back from the Olympics. I will study while at the Games and even after I come back, I will still have a chance to study for the examinations before the world championships.”
“From primary school I was running like this. At Vorentoe they used to call me ‘Wobble Wobble’ because my hands were all over. Now it’s much better because they are a bit closer to my body, but as long as it’s working for me, why must I change it.”
Walaza has set a clear target of gold at the Under-20 World Championships in Lima, Peru, later this year, but without looking further ahead, he hopes to give his best in Paris and motivate kids his age to chase their dreams.
“I want to motivate the young people who do not believe in themselves and their dreams, because I have been dreaming about this since I was young. Even here, in school, there are kids who didn’t do any sports, but ever since they heard that I will be going to the Olympics, they have found new belief that they can also do it.
“They have started taking part in sports. They have started to believe that if I can do it, they can also do it.”
Walaza was raised in Katlehong in Gauteng, and just like every child that grew up in a township, he played football but ultimately chose athletics as his preferred sport.
“I love soccer but there was nothing coming out of it. I went for trials at the School of Excellence and it was hectic.
“I was not picked, but I played soccer for fun, and although I also loved it, it was different with athletics. I started liking the sport when I was still young, and people thought I was weird for picking running as a sport when I had other options.
“I wanted to be different. There are a lot of people playing soccer and everyone wants to be a soccer star but I was different.”