Tumi Ramokgopa completed a double medal haul with silver in the 400m hurdles final, closing out South Africa’s women’s campaign at the World Athletics U20 Championships at Hayward Field in Eugene, Oregon in the United States on Sunday, 9 August 2026.
Ramokgopa produced one of the best performances of her young career in the final session of the championships, taking second place in 55.88 and clipping two hundredths off the personal best of 55.90 she set last year. Alexandra Stefania Uta of Romania won gold in 55.33, a European under-20 record and her first global title, while Eleni Iakovaki of Greece finished third in 55.99 for a Greek under-20 record.
The silver was Ramokgopa’s second in as many days. She had taken second place in the 100m hurdles final on Saturday in 12.96, three hundredths outside her own South African under-20 record of 12.93, in a race where the first three athletes all broke 13 seconds. Madeline Cooper of the United States won that title in 12.91 and Tiana Marshall of Jamaica took bronze in 12.97.
Ramokgopa was the only South African woman to reach the podium in Eugene, and she leaves Oregon with two silver medals from two finals in two disciplines across consecutive evenings. The 400m hurdles result also settles unfinished business. At the previous championships in Lima in 2024 she went out at the semifinal stage of the same event, and she had spoken openly this season about returning to the global stage to put that right.
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The Tuks athlete arrived in Eugene as the South African under-20 champion in both hurdles disciplines and the South African senior 100m hurdles champion, having become the first South African under-20 woman to break 13 seconds over the short hurdles when she ran 12.93 at the ASA Age Group Championships in Germiston in March.
In the women’s javelin throw final on the closing day, Marine Grobler finished sixth with a best of 51.33m and Stephane Hook was eighth with 49.45m, completing a strong week for the South African throwers.
Athletics South Africa acting president John Mathane praised the squad at the close of competition.
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“This is a tremendously proud moment for South African athletics. On behalf of Athletics South Africa, I congratulate every athlete, coach, team official, support staff and everyone who contributed to this outstanding performance in Eugene,” said Mathane.
“These young athletes have once again shown that South Africa has a strong pipeline of future champions, and their success gives us great confidence and excitement for the future of our sport.”
The championships, which drew more than 1800 athletes from 147 member federations in the largest field in the 40-year history of the event, closed at Hayward Field on Sunday, 9 August 2026.
Original Copy: Athletics SA, with editing by gsport
Main Photo Caption: Tumi Ramokgopa won silver in the 400m hurdles final on the closing day of the World Athletics U20 Championships at Hayward Field in Eugene, Oregon on Sunday, 9 August 2026, her second medal of the championships. Photo: Tumi Ramokgoba
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