Akani Simbine is having the season of his life. The South African star is no longer the underdog chasing podium finishes; he’s now the man to beat. With a string of electric performances and a growing air of quiet confidence, Simbine is redefining the 100m landscape and forcing sprinting heavyweights like Noah Lyles and Kishane Thompson to play catch-up.
A Season of Statement Wins
Fresh off a commanding victory at the Atlanta City Games, the South African speedster is no longer just clocking fast times; he’s owning the track. His wind-aided 9.86 seconds on the straight may not go into the official record books, but it sent an unmistakable message: Simbine has found another gear.
Just a week earlier, he posted a world-leading 9.90 in Botswana. Follow that with consecutive wins on the Diamond League circuit, and it’s clear, this is no fluke. Akani Simbine isn’t chasing times anymore; he’s managing races, dictating terms, and finishing with a confident, unflappable dominance.
Justin Gatlin Sees the Shift
One man who knows what it takes to stay at the top is former Olympic champion Justin Gatlin. Now analyzing the sport from the sidelines, Gatlin believes Akani has finally cracked the code.
“Listen, Simbine has finally found that rhythm, and that’s probably come with maturity and the realization that, all right, you are a vet now,” Gatlin said on his Ready Set Go podcast.
“He’s a top dog. He runs his times, he knows how to run it, and now he knows how to balance running those times while competing at a level where he’s still coming across the line first.”
Gatlin stressed that at this level, it’s not just about raw speed. It’s about knowing when to strike. And right now, Akani Simbine is striking with ruthless precision.
The Race That Told the Story
The Atlanta showdown was a microcosm of Simbine’s evolution. He didn’t explode out of the blocks, but midway through the race, he made his move, a powerful, effortless surge that left Nigeria’s Udodi Onwuzurike chasing shadows and the rest of the field battling for second. That sudden gear shift epitomized the transformation of an athlete who’s no longer reacting but controlling.
And perhaps most impressively, Simbine is enjoying every second of it. He described his Atlanta run as “no stress” and “fun,” a carefree-but-not-careless mindset that’s clearly unlocked a new level of performance.
For someone who once fought to break through the logjam of elite sprinters, he’s now the one others are chasing. Analysts are talking. Predictions are shifting. Rivals are recalibrating their expectations.
Rivals Stumble as Simbine Shines
In a fortnight that was meant to showcase the supremacy of Olympic medalists, Akani Simbine flipped the script. At the Shanghai/Keqiao Diamond League, he edged out Kishane Thompson by a whisker, 9.98 to 9.99 seconds, in a photo finish that silenced any doubts about his consistency. Three international 100m races, three straight wins.
Meanwhile, Noah Lyles, expected to duel Simbine in Atlanta, pulled out minutes before the start due to a tight ankle.
“We came up thinking anything could happen, but it wasn’t getting better and I need to play it safe,” Lyles told NBC.
His absence cleared the path for yet another dominant Simbine performance.
As others stumble, Simbine is capitalizing. Every slip, every withdrawal, every near miss from his rivals strengthens his grip on the sprinting spotlight.
Eyes on the World Championships
With the World Championships in Tokyo looming, Simbine’s world lead of 9.90 remains intact. More importantly, he’s carrying invaluable momentum and belief into the biggest stage of the season.
He’s not sneaking up on anyone anymore. He’s taken the spotlight. And he’s earning every moment of it.
As Justin Gatlin aptly put it, this isn’t about who can run fast on a given day. It’s about who can manage the pressure, seize the moment, and consistently come across the finish line first. Right now, that man is Akani Simbine.
