SA mixed 4x100m team on the verge of qualifying for World Relays

Fingers crossed, breadth held as South Africa watches the countdown to the final slot allocations for the World Athletics Relays to be held in Gaborone, Botswana on 2-3 May.

In an attempt to secure spots at the global showpiece for the other two squads, ASA sent the women's and mixed 4x100m teams to the Lefika International Relays held on Saturday.

The 4x100m mixed team of Joviale Mbisha, Tamzin Gelant, Retshidisitswe Mlenga and Tsebo Matsoso, finished third in their contest in 42.57 (behind Nigeria and Kenya) and provisionally booked their place at the global relay championships.

Currently ranked 22nd in the qualifying race, as long as three other countries don't overtake them with quicker times before the window period closes on Sunday, 5 April, they will participate at the same venue in Gaborone in just over a month from now.

The women's 4x100m quartet of Leonette Vosloo, Chardone Smidt, Mbisha and Gelant, won their race in 44.64 seconds. This ranked them 49th in the qualifying race in their event, however, and with only 24 spots available, they did not qualify for the World Athletics Relays.

"This shows we are making progress. Since the last edition of the World Athletics Relays it looks like we will increase our national squad by one team in Gaborone," according to ASA High Performance manager, Hezekiel Sepeng.

"Our long-term goal in the build-up to the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles is to have teams representing us in all relay events, and we are happy with the progress we're making."

Last year at the World Athletics Relays in China, the SA squad earned medals in the men's and women's 4x400m relays, as well as the men's 4x100m, and the mixed 4x400m squad reached the final. The nation was not represented, however, in the women's and mixed 4x100m events.

The four teams that competed last year, have already qualified. South Africa finished top of the overall medals table last year with three medals made of two golds and one bronze.