Rikenette Steenkamp produced another breakthrough performance on Sunday, obliterating her own South African 100m hurdles record with a sterling performance at the Resisprint International Track and Field Meeting in La Chaux-de-Fonds, Switzerland.
After winning her heat in 12.70 seconds in the morning, with the benefit of a +2.2m/s tailwind, Rikenette Steenkamp covered the final in 12.81, with a legal wind giving her a new national mark. She edged out second-placed Dutch athlete Eefje Boons by 0.10.
Steenkamp’s performance bettered the previous SA record of 12.91, which she had set at a track meeting in Prague a few weeks earlier.
It was the second national record effort of the weekend after middle-distance runner Caster Semenya clocked 1:54.25 to win the women’s 800m race at the IAAF Diamond League meeting in Paris on Saturday night.
“What a great and gutsy performance from Rikenette!” remarked Aleck Skhosana, the President of Athletics South Africa. “We are proud of her, the coach and support team.
“We urge her to continue to hoist the flag of the country and we urge her to remain focussed so that she can ultimately achieve even better.”