Werner Smit (18) became South Africa’s first gold medal winner at the 2002 IAAF/Coca Cola World Junior Athletics Championships in Kingston, Jamaica, on Wednesday.
He won the hammer throw title with an outstanding distance of 76,43 metres.
It was one of the best performances on the second day of the championships. He is the ninth SA athlete to win a gold medal at world junior athletics level.
Smit dominated the competition from the start and four of his five official throws were better than that of the second athlete.
He also had throws of 74.63, 76.43, 73.74, 73.39 and 76.03m.
The young Cape Town athlete made his first impact on
international athletics in Debrecen, Hungary, a year ago when he won the silver medal at the World Youth Championships. His winning performance on Wednesday also bettered his own South African record with the 6kg hammer by a massive 1.83m.
Al Mohammed Al-Zinkawi of Kuwait finished second with a throw of 73.69m. – Sapa