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Cape Town - Rising hammer thrower, Letitia Janse van Vuuren, has continued her rapid progress, breaking her own national record in her specialist event at the Sasol-NWU International Senior Athletics meeting in Sasolburg on Tuesday evening.
Janse van Vuuren sent the hammer sailing out to 63.82m*, smashing the previous mark of 61.06m which she had achieved at a League Meeting in Pretoria last month.
"The first time I broke the record I didn't really expect it, but this time I felt better prepared and I felt I could do it," said the 20-year-old Pukke athlete, who is coached by Basie Koen at the HTS/VUT Hammer Throw Academy.
"I had a good few weeks of training and gym sessions before this, so I felt I could do it tonight."
Olympic 800m champion Caster Semenya also came close to improving another SA best in the women's 300m sprint.
Semenya defeated Amantle Montsho of Botswana, a multiple IAAF World Championships 400m medallist, and local one-lap hurdles star Wenda Nel, by crossing the line in 37.22.
Semenya was 0.20 outside the national record of 37.02 set by Heide Quinn in Sydney nearly 17 years ago.
Aleck Skhosana, the President of ASA said: “We are extremely happy that we are spending another week welcoming yet another new national record.
“It would be indeed even nicer if this became a trend where we wake up to a new record everyday by our South African athletes.
“Congratulations to Letitia, her coaches and all those around her progress and we wish her well as she raises her performance to new targets.”
* The SA record is subject to a standard ratification process.
