Photo: Erik van Leeuwen—CC BY-SA 4.0
Wayde Van Niekerk
RSAMenWayde van Niekerk, born on 15 July 1992 in Cape Town, South Africa, is a South African sprinter who competes in the 200 and 400 metres. He is the current world and Olympic record holder in the 400 metres, having set the mark of 43.03 seconds at the 2016 Rio Olympics to win the gold medal, breaking Michael Johnson's long-standing record of 43.18 from 1999.
Van Niekerk won the 400 metres gold medal at both the 2015 and 2017 World Championships, adding a 200 metres silver at the 2017 edition in London. He also claimed silver in the 400 m at the 2014 Commonwealth Games. In 2016, he became the first sprinter in history to run the 100 metres under 10 seconds, 200 metres under 20 seconds, and 400 metres under 44 seconds.
In 2017, Van Niekerk broke Michael Johnson's world-best time in the seldom-run 300 metres with a time of 30.81 seconds, making him the only sprinter ever to achieve sub-10, sub-20, sub-31, and sub-44 performances across the 100 m, 200 m, 300 m, and 400 m.
As of Sep 16, 2026: 400 m 43.03 (#1 all-time), 300 Metres 30.81, 2026 season best 9.83 (Jul 1, 2026, Coetzenburg Stadium, Stellenbosch (RSA)) · Last competition: Raiffeisen Austrian Open Eisenstadt, Jul 1, 2026, 9.83 · Olympic Games: 1 gold · World Championships: 2 gold, 1 silver, 1 bronze · World record (400 m) · 34 years old
Personal bests
Medals
| 🥇 | 🥈 | 🥉 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Olympic Games | 1 | - | - | 1 |
| World Championships | 2 | 1 | 1 | 4 |
| Total | 3 | 1 | 1 | 5 |