One of South Africa’s leading up and coming 400m athletes will be in action in Tshwane in the colours of Athletics Gauteng North (AGN) this weekend, at the SA Youth and Junior Championships.
Eugenie Wicksell holds the fastest time in South Africa this year (55.23sec) which she ran in Germiston, and is set to make her mark in South Africa track and field.
“It was at the Inter Schools High Competition on 22 February. I should have won. I was beat by two seconds. I ran that race in 58 seconds, but I wasn’t focused,” said the athlete who has lost only one 400m race in 2007.
A lesson well learnt, and despite the nerves she professes to feel for Friday when she lines up in the 400m, she is odds-on favourite to become the 2007 SA Junior Champion over 400m.
One look at her gene pool will tell any knowledgeable sports follower that she is truly blessed, and a sub 54sec is not outside her reach. Eugenie’s mother, Ilse Wicksell was the first female to crack the 2min barrier in the 800m.
In fact she is still ranked second on the South African 800m All Time Lists. Ilse also still holds the South African Record for the 1000m. Eugenie’s father, Ray Wicksell was a 1500m Olympian for the United States.
Eugenie’s toughest competition will come from her teammates Monique Maree and Karyn Dreyer.
It was Maree who pushed Eugenie to her 55.23sec best in Germiston on 10 March, and Karyn Dreyer has run a 56.76sec 400m; also on the fast track of Germiston.
All three athletes run for Gauteng North and it is not impossible that they could make a clean sweep of the medals for their Province on Friday.
The three are sitting pretty atop the South African Junior Ranking lists and will also make up the main squad for the 4x400m relay.
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