Wayde van Niekerk

Wayde van Niekerk is a South African sprinter who competes in the 200 and 400 metres. He was born in Kraaifontein, studied marketing at the University of the Free State and made his international debut at the 2010 World Junior Championships. He won the 400 metres at the 2015 World Championships and defended the title two years later in London, where he also took silver in the 200 metres. At the 2016 Olympic Games he won the 400 metres in a world record of 43.03 seconds, beating the mark Michael Johnson had set in 1999, and that time remains the Olympic record. In 2016 he became the first sprinter to have run under 10 seconds for 100 metres, under 20 for 200 and under 44 for 400.