Gary Lemke looks back at a jam-packed sporting weekend as Kaizer Chiefs lifted the Nedbank Cup to end a 10-year trophy wait, while Akani Simbine led South Africa to a gold medal in the 4x100m at the World Relay Championships in Guangzhou, China.
SIMBINE LEADS SA SPEEDSTERS TO GOLD
South Africa could already boast they had the fastest man on the planet, and now they’ve got the fastest four men on the planet. This is after Bayanda Walaza, Sinesipho Dambile, Bradley Nkoana, and Akani Simbine scorched to a gold medal in the 4x100m at the World Relay Championships in Guangzhou, China.
Simbine finished off the race in spectacular style, coming from behind to dip in 37.61sec, also the quickest 4x100m time in the world this year. The 4x400m (one lap each) men joined the act, and Gaerdeo Isaacs, Udeme Okon, Leendert Koekemoer and Zakithi Nene won gold in 2:57.50. South Africa’s women’s 4x400m also earned a medal, a bronze.
NO DNA JUST RSA 🇿🇦 🧬 pic.twitter.com/lWGjkcNBDB
— Akani Simbine (@AkaniSimbine) May 11, 2025
AMAKHOSI END 10 YEARS OF TROPHY HURT
Kaizer Chiefs are still celebrating their first trophy in a decade after Yusuf Mat popped up with 10 minutes remaining to win the Nedbank Cup for the Amakhosi at a packed Moses Mabhida Stadium in Durban.
Chiefs won 2-1 after the scores had been 1-1 at half-time. It certainly wasn’t a match to showcase the “beautiful game” – Pirates coach Jose Riveiro called it “ugly”, but that’s of no importance because the scoreboard tells the story.
Pirates, who will probably finish second in the Betway Premiership, also came close in the CAF Champions Cup, losing in the semi-finals, but they won the MTN 8 Cup, so there are silver linings to their season.
CHAMPIONS LEAGUE SPOTS ON KNIFE EDGE
While Liverpool’s draw with Arsenal means they have picked up one point from a possible six since being confirmed English Premier League champions, the job has been done, and they lead by 15 points over the Gunners.
The attention turned a while ago to the race for the remaining Champions League slots. Newcastle scored a big 2-0 win against 10-man Chelsea, while Aston Villa won, and Man City and Nottingham Forest both drew.
The upshot is that Arsenal are second on 68 points, Newcastle next on 66, then City on 65, Chelsea and Villa on 63 and Forest on 62. Lower down, Man United lost for aa 17th time this League season – 2-0 at home to West Ham – and will finish, at best, 13th.
SA’S URC BIG GUNS SIDES BLOW AWAY WELSH
South Africa’s three sides into the quarter-finals of the United Rugby Championship predictably all beat Welsh club opposition, by an aggregate 122-43, but the Lions, out of last eight contention, suffered a surprising home defeat to the Scarlets.
With one round remaining before the playoffs, the Bulls sit second, the Hollywoodbets Sharks fourth and the Stormers fifth. With the quarter-final line-up one round away from being confirmed, a Sharks vs Stormers showdown in Durban is looming large, while the Bulls will stay in Pretoria.
SELUKWE SWOOPS TO WIN JULY POINTER
The WSB 1900 at Hollywoodbets Greyville is traditionally seen as a guide to the Hollywoodbets Durban July, and Selukwe introduced himself by winning impressively.
His 400m-to-finish time was the fastest of the day, and the race was run exactly three seconds quicker than Regulation, also a July entry, managed 40 minutes later. Selukwe, who was my winning selection in the Hollywoodbets Punters Challenge, started 16-1 and is 25-1 for the July.
Did we see the winner of the July anywhere on the weekend, Turffontein included? I doubt it, but Selukwe will have his supporters in the big race and can run on into the placings, where he’s currently 5-2 to finish top six.
The WSB 1900 - A July Pointer. Have we ever seen this jockey emotional? Serino Moodley speaking about his win on Selukwe.
— SAHorseracing (@SAHorseracing) May 11, 2025
SAHorseracing – Your Go-To Voice in Racing Since 2002 #SAHorseracing #RacingNews #HorseRacing #SouthAfricaRacing #DubaiWorldCup #UKRacing… pic.twitter.com/pFNAvcc2kV
OTHER SOUTH AFRICANS IN THE NEWS
Brad Binder’s ordinary 2025 season continued when he crashed on the sixth lap at the French MotoGP, while Johann Zarco broke the Marquez’ brothers’ sequence of winning. Binder is now 14th on the standings, with Marc Marquez leading Alex …
The Baby Boks fell short in a high-scoring Under-20 Rugby Championship showdown with traditional rivals the junior All Blacks, losing 48-45 in Gqeberha after leading 26-24 at half-time. NZ won the round-robin event with 11 points, followed by Australia, with South Africa third and Argentina fourth …
The recreational drug that Kagiso Rabada tested positive for, which resulted in a one-month ban (now served), was revealed to be cocaine. He is free to continue his cricketing career without any further ramifications.
