Justin Gatlin has explained what normally causes Akani Simbine medals at major championships after almost always finishing in fourth place every time.
American sprint legend Justin Gatlin has opined what normally costs Akani Simbine medals at major world championships after the South African claimed his first-ever individual global medal of his career.
Competing in his debut at the event, Simbine clocked 6.54 seconds in the final, trailing Great Britain's Jeremiah Azu (gold, 6.49 seconds) and Australia's Lachlan Kennedy (silver, 6.50 seconds).
This achievement marked a significant milestone in Simbine's career, as he had previously faced near-misses in outdoor competitions, often finishing fourth or fifth in major events. His perseverance and dedication paid off, earning him a well-deserved spot on the podium.
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Although he claimed his first medal for South Africa at the Paris Olympic games by finishing second in the final of the 4 by 100 meters to clinch silver, other previous championships often resulted in disappointments.
He finished fifth in the 100m at the 2016 Rio Olympics and the 2017 World Championships, and narrowly missed the podium with fourth-place finishes at the 2019 Doha World Championships, the 2021 Tokyo Olympics, and the 2024 Paris Olympics.
Despite consistently reaching finals and setting impressive times, including a national record of 9.82 seconds in Paris, Simbine often fell short of medals by fractions of a second
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Now Gatlin has pointed his misses to a flaw in his training regimen.
“For me, I think part of the reason is his preparation timeline,” Gatlin said on his Ready Set Go Podcast discussing his situation with Rodney Greene.
“We’ve talked about this before, and I could be totally wrong, but I believe it plays a role. Because of where he is in the world, he starts preparing much earlier than most sprinters.
By December, he’s already in outdoor sprint shape—not just gearing up for 60m races, but actually racing outdoors in December and January.
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“Now, imagine carrying that load for months. He has to sustain that speed from December through February, March, April, and May. Meanwhile, the rest of the world is just getting into peak outdoor shape around May or June.
"Then, by the time major championships like the Olympics or World Championships come around in August, he’s already been at that level for so long. That’s a long time to maintain peak sprinting form.”
Gatlin has advised Simbine to consider switching up his tactical regimen if he is to break his duck outdoors.
“As a veteran athlete, sometimes you have to consider making adjustments. Maybe he’s been doing it this way for years, but why not switch it up?
“What if he pushes his training back by a month or a month and a half to align more with the rest of the world? If he did that—assuming he hasn’t already—I don’t see how he wouldn’t consistently make the podium."
Could this be the tweak Simbine needs to finally secure an outdoor global medal? With the 2025 World Championships in Tokyo and the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles on the horizon, time will tell if the South African sprinter takes Gatlin’s advice to heart.