These are boom and bust times in world athletics.

The Russians are in an unholy mess, Rio Olympics organisers are quietly hopeful and South Africa is experiencing a golden age.

Not since the late 1980s, when local athletics drew big crowds and the action would be broadcast live on national television from Pilditch, Herman Immelman Stadium and elsewhere, has the sport been in such rude health.

The reality was driven home again last week, on Nelson Mandela Day appropriately enough, when Akani Simbine crashed through the 9.90sec mark to record a staggering 9.89sec SA record on a faraway track in Budapest. Among those left in his vapour trails were sprint grandees Kim Collins and Asafa Powell.

On the same day, Simbine also nailed a personal best in the 200m, clocking 20.16sec.

Elsewhere, Wayde van Niekerk and Caster Semenya were also tearing up international tracks to reaffirm the country’s ambitions.

It’s Simbine’s misfortune that he will have to play second fiddle to the fastest sprinter of all time, but, equally, Usain Bolt has demonstrated how to go about smashing barriers. His jaw-dropping 9.58sec world record in Berlin in 2009 shows that almost anything is possible. Everyone has had to up their game.

Simbine’s run was a great indicator of form with the Olympics now just 10 days away. Only four men have run faster this year: former doping fiend Justin Gatlin (9.80), Trayvon Bromell (9.84), Jimmy Vicaut (9.86) and Bolt (9.88).

Incidentally, SA teammate Henricho Bruintjies also has a 9.89 to his credit, but that was wind-assisted. By way of comparison, Namibia’s Frankie Fredericks produced a blitsvinnig 9.86 exactly 20 years ago.

Simbine is now in esteemed company, although he will surely have to go even faster if he’s to have a sniff in Rio. The blue Mondo track that has been laid at the Olympic Stadium is jet-fast and Sebastian Coe himself has predicted that records will fall.

One record certain to go is the Brazilian allcomers’ record, a relatively pedestrian 10.05sec set by Dwain Chambers, another doper, five years ago.

If Bolt’s luminous 9.58sec looks out of reach – the Jamaican himself is nowhere near that sort of form – Simbine will likely have to lower his own mark to be in the mix.

Assuming he gets through the qualifiers, he may have to run a sub-9.80 to trouble the medals table. Indeed, his run this week would have placed him sixth had he produced that time in London four years ago.

One thing Simbine won’t be in Rio is gun shy. He has raced against all the superstars, Bolt among them, and never been intimidated. He looks comfortable in their company.

He will also be among the smallest sprinters. Of the big names, only Bromell is shorter – 1,7m to the South African’s 1,76m.

Bolt is seriously tall (1,85m) and around 10kg heavier (94kg) than his competition on average. Gatlin weighs 83kg, Powell 87kg, Tyson Gay 75kg and Simbine 71kg.

Bolt’s dimensions have confounded sports scientists. He shouldn’t be able to accelerate at the speed he does given the length of his legs. Convention dictates that sprinters take short steps at the beginning in order to accelerate, but Bolt can’t do that because he’s exceptionally tall. Indeed, he’s not known as the best or fastest starter. Yet when he reaches top speed he has a massive advantage because he’s taking fewer steps.

Not forgetting his strides are about 2,44m — 20cm longer on average than the other top sprinters.

Simbine is conversely most effective at the start where shorter, more powerful legs put him in his best position in the earlier, acceleration stage. Despite this, he was able to reel in the 1,90m Powell during the final 25m of the sprint in Hungary.

Simbine is locally based, at the High Performance Centre in Pretoria, but his big times prove the value of mixing in top international company. He would not have pulled out such a big time in SA because the talent pool is far more shallow.

Despite the virtues of all the other disciplines, there’s no race quite as thrilling as the 100m. Speed combines with explosiveness and swagger and we’re all left breathless by the cocktail.

Simbine has earned his place at the top table. Here’s hoping he feasts. – © Sunday Tribune