South Africa’s long wait for a World Championships medal finally ended in Tokyo on the closing night of the 2025 competition. The Men’s 4x400m Relay team of Lythe Pillay, Udeme Okon, Zakithi Nene, and Wayde van Niekerk produced a brilliant run to secure bronze in 2:57.83, edging past Jamaica in a dramatic finish.

The race itself will be remembered as one of the highlights of the championships. Botswana made history with their first ever world title in this event, clocking 2:57.76. The United States claimed silver in 2:57.83, with South Africa matching that time but officially placed third by just two thousandths of a second. Van Niekerk, running the anchor leg in heavy rain, delivered a trademark surge down the home straight to carry South Africa onto the podium.

For South African athletics, the medal represents more than a single success. It ended a barren run stretching back to London 2017, when Wayde van Niekerk won silver in the 200m and gold in the 400m, and Luvo Manyonga took long jump gold. Since then, the country endured three consecutive World Championships without a medal, in Doha 2019, Eugene 2022, and Budapest 2023, an unprecedented slump for a nation once ranked as high as third on the medal table.