Tuks coach guides 18-year-old long jumper to make 'sports history'

Getting long jumpers to push the boundaries seems like the Tuks athletics coach, Neil Cornelius's forte.

Over the weekend, the 18-year-old Asande Mthemba (TUT) made fans sit up and note his heroics when he jumped 8.08 metres during the South African Junior Championships in Pietermaritzburg. It was good enough to win gold in the under-20 competition.

What made this remarkable is that it is only the second time a South African under-20 athlete exceeded 8 metres in a long jump competition. The last time it happened was 12 years ago. Mpho Maphutha jumped 8 metres in 2011 in Germiston. Cornelius also coached him.

Mthemba's 8.08-metre jump ranks him among the 11th best on the South African all-time list.

The former World Champion and Olympic medallist Luvo Manyonga and Khotso Mokoena (also a former Olympic medallist) only managed to jump 8 metres when they were 19.

There is a lovely story to be told about Mthemba's big jump. On Saturday, his second attempt was massive. Cornelius believes that he might have come close to improving on Manyonga's SA junior record (8.19 metres). But unfortunately, he overstepped. That was not the worst of it.

"Asande literally 'jumped out his spikes'. On landing, both his shoes had torn open. We had to hastily borrow another athlete's 'spikes' so he could continue competing. The shoes were, however, slightly too big. It led to Asande struggling to find form," said the Tuks coach.

"After five rounds, he was out of it. He might have been fifth. Asande decided he had nothing to lose, so he wanted to do his last jump with his own shoes. I was lucky to find some blue 'duck tape'. I wrapped it around both shoes as best as I could so that it was intact again.

"With his last attempt wearing patched shoes, Asande did not hold back. He went big. When he landed, I knew it was a massive jump. I could not help myself. I started cheering. It was a fantastic comeback. It proved that Asande has got a big match temperament. His shoes, however, did not survive. Afterwards, you could put a whole hand through the tears."

This weekend in Potchefstroom, Mthemba will compete at the South African Senior Championships in Potchefstroom. Despite his 8.08 metre effort being the best by an African athlete this season, Cornelius is not one to make bold predictions.

"From the first day I started to coach Asande, I made him understand that what he did yesterday does not count for tomorrow. The South African Senior Champs is a new competition with new

challenges. He will need to dig deep again to try and come up with another big jump if he wants to medal."

If Mthemba medals, he could be the youngest long jumper to medal at a senior national championship.

When asked if the youngster could be the next real deal as a South African long jumper, Cornelius said he believed so.

"What makes it special to coach Asande is his passion for being the best. He thinks like a champion. Some might perceive him to be cocky, but he is not. Any athlete who wants to be a champion must have confidence in their abilities."

Besides being the only coach to get local 18-year-olds to exceed 8 metres in a long jump competition, Cornelius is also the only South Africa to have coached athletes to medal at the Olympic Games and the Paralympic Games.

Manyonga won silver in the long jump during the 2016 Rio Olympic Games, while Ntando Mahlangu won gold during the 2021 Tokyo Paralympic Games. Manyonga is still the South African record holder (8.65 metres), while Mahlangu set a world record (7.17 metres) during the Games.

The Tuks coach will again guide Mahlangu in the buildup to the 2024 Paris Paralympic Games