SA’s Manyonga jumps into Diamond League record books
South Africa long jumper Luvo Manyonga has set a new Diamond League record after he took a massive leap of 8.61m at the 2017 IAAF Diamond League Shanghai on Saturday.
He took on a quality field, which included fellow South Africans Rushwal Samaai & Khotso Mokoena, who finished fifth and eight respectively.
The 26-year-old has bettered the record for Africa twice this year to 8.65m.
During the first round, he faced Jeff Henderson of the United States and Australia’s 2016 Diamond League winner Fabrice Lapierre where he took the lead with a 8.48m leap.
Later he improved to 8.49m with his third attempt, despite a foul. While he fouled again in the following two rounds, he had already sealed the title before his final jump.
South Africans have congratulated Manyonga on social media.