Palesa Manaleng11 August 2024 | 7:15

Jo-Ane van Dyk throws her way into an Olympic silver medal

The 26-year-old is coached by Terseus Liebenberg, who also guided Viljoen to the silver medal at Rio 2016.

Jo-Ane van Dyk throws her way into an Olympic silver medal

Jo-Ane van Dyk is a South African track and field athlete who competes in the javelin throw. Picture: @CyrilRamaphosa/X.

JOHANNESBURG - Jo-Ane van Dyk threw her way into second position on Saturday night and earned South Africa’s sixth medal at the Paris Games.

Van Dyk, on the final night of track and field action at the Paris Games, produced a third effort of 63.93m, which moved her up into the silver medal behind Japan’s Haruka Kitaguchi, who had opened with a winning 65.80m.

It was to be 25cm better than bronze medallist Nikola Ogrodnikova, and 53cm better than the fourth-place finisher, Sara Kolak.

The 26-year-old is coached by Terseus Liebenberg, who also guided Viljoen to a silver medal at Rio 2016.

Van Dyk participated in her first Olympics in Tokyo, and there she was eliminated in qualifying with a best of 57.69m.

Meanwhile, on Friday, South Africa's men's 4x100m relay team stormed to a silver medal, setting an African record with a time of 37.57 seconds.

The quartet, comprising Akani Simbine, Shaun Maswanganyi, Bradley Nkoana and Bayanda Walaza, delivered a performance that will be remembered for years to come.