JOHANNESBURG- World Champion Justin Gatlin will compete in the much anticipated Athletix Grand Prix Series in March 2018.
Gatlin who is owns three World titles and an Olympic titles has joined a list of world class athletes who will compete at Tuks Stadium (Tshwane) on Thursday, 8 March in the second of the three series meetings. Gatlin is the biggest name to compete in South African soil sicne Micheal Johnson in 2001, a likely booster for South African athletics.
The race is a 150m and this is nothing new for Gatlin “I have obviously done 150s in training, but have never raced over that distance before. It will be interesting to see how I do. It is also my first race of the season which adds to the excitement for me,” said Gatlin.
South African athletics President Aleck Skhosana is excited for Gatlin to compete in South Africa, he said, ” Having Justin Gatlin running in South Africa is a big coup for us.”
“We have such incredible depth in the sprints in South Africa. To have an athlete of Justin Gatlin’s caliber compete here against our athletes means that the world sees us as a major contender in the sprints,” he said.
“It also brings other great benefits as it inspires other aspiring sprinters and beyond. It also inspires coaches to produce the caliber of sprinters along the likes of Gatlin and Akani Simbine.”
Photo Credit- SI
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