Two gold medals for SA team in Mauritius

The South African team made an explosive start on Wednesday, opening their campaign in style by raking in four medals on Day 1 of the CAA African Senior African Championships Mauritius.

Allan Cumming won gold in the men's hammer throw, with compatriot Tshepang Makhethe bagging the silver medal in a one-two finish for the SA.

Cumming launched a 69.13m effort in the final round to snatch the continental title in a tightly contested battle for the medals. Makhethe's best attempt landed at 68.75, as he held off Egyptian bronze medallist Mostafa Elgamal who took bronze (67.80m).

Renaldo Frechou closed out the South African challenge by taking sixth place with a 64.24m throw.

In the women's shot put, Ischke Senekal continued her continental dominance by successfully retaining the title she won at the last edition in Asaba, Nigeria, in 2018.

Senekal produced a 16.40m heave in the fifth round to secure gold, while Carine Bachetta-Mekam of Gabon grabbed the silver medal with a 15.87m throw, and South Africa's Zonica Lindeque filled the bottom step of the podium with a 15.79m effort to ensure bronze.

Dane Roets took fifth place with a best attempt of 14.87m.

In the only final on the track on the opening day of competition, national champion Mbuleli Mathanga finished seventh in the men's 10 000m final in 29:40.86, crossing the line just ahead of countryman Elroy Gelant, who was eighth in 29:41.40.

Tumay Mogos of Ethiopia won the race in 29:19.01, earning his country's first gold medal of the championships.

The SA team were top of the medals table at the end of the first day with two golds, one silver and one bronze.

"It's still the first day, but it's definitely the way to start any competition. This will inspire the rest of the team still going into contest. Congratulations to all our medallists for their achievements today! We congratulate the coaches and all support staff for the success of the Athletics," said James Moloi, the President of Athletics South Africa.

The five-day CAA African Championships will conclude on Sunday.