02 Nov 2016

August 2017 might seem far away but for Karabo Sibanda it is near as he aims to qualify for the World Championships in London.

He does not want to leave anything to chance this time as qualifying for a major competition has its own advantage.

Sibanda's training partners Baboloki Thebe and Nijel Amos have already qualified for the World Championships by virtue of being Africa Champions in 400m and 800m respectively.

Sibanda is aware of the daunting task that lie ahead of him in his quest to qualify for the World Championships, hence he has started training despite the fact that the world athletics body IAFF is yet to release the qualifying standards.

“I am not going to sit on my laurels and wait for IAAF to release the qualifying standards.  

I have started to prepare and, you see, in athletics how you prepare during the off-season is very important,” Sibanda said in an interview.

He explained that training was going well, stating that he was working on his endurance and would later on do speed.

He said his performance at the Olympics was now history. “My focus now is that I don't lose focus, for now I want to maintain my Personal Best of 44.25 that I clocked in Rio de Janeiro,” he said.

The IAAF World U20 Championships bronze medallist further said his aim is to continue doing his best in every competition next year.

These include the World Relays to be held in Bahamas, Botswana Athletics Association (BAA) National Championships, the World Champions and the Diamond League.

“My main focus is on the World Championships of course. It is one of the biggest competitions after the Olympics therefore a lot will be at stake. After my performance at the Olympics I think people will be expecting more from me, but I will go there to enjoy my race without pressure,” Sibanda said.

Sibanda finished in fifth position at the Olympics in Brazil and his performance placed him second fastest junior runner in the world this year after Baboloki Thebe. ENDS