Jonathan Ntutu

Last updated

Jonathan Ntutu
Personal information
Full nameNdodomzi Jonathan Ntutu
NationalitySouth African
Born (1986-02-04) 4 February 1986 (age 37)
Height171 cm (5 ft 7 in)
Sport
CountrySouth Africa
SportAthletics
Disability class T12
Event(s)100m
ClubTygerberg Northlink Club
Coached byPaul Gorries
Achievements and titles
Paralympic finals 4
Highest world ranking1
Personal best(s)10.80

Ndodomzi Jonathan Ntutu (born 4 February 1986) is a visually impaired South African sprinter. Ndodomzi Jonathan Ntutu is currently South Africa's fastest ever para-athlete. His 10.80 was posted on April 12, 2018, during the heats of the Commonwealth Games. [1] Competing in the T12 classification, Ntutu has competed at three Summer Paralympic Games, winning bronze in the 2012 Games in London. He is also a multiple World Championships winner, taking five medals over four tournaments. [2]

Contents

Personal history

Ntutu was born in the township of Gugulethu in Cape Town, South Africa in 1986 to Alexander Ntutu and his wife Sylvia. [3] He was born with a congenital complication that left him visually impaired; though he is not blind. [2] He was unable to cope in mainstream education and his parents, who struggled financially, ensured that his needs were catered for by enrolling him in the Athlone School for the Blind. [3] His father died in 1996, when Ntutu was entering his early teen years. [3] He now lives in Bellville, Western Cape. [4]

Athletics career

Ntutu first showed promise as an athlete whilst at the Athlone school, showing at aptitude for sprinting. [2] He was inspired to compete at the Paralympic Games after a pupil at his school qualified for the South Africa team at the 2000 Games in Sydney. [3] He took on board a local trainer, David Williams, and began training at the Vygieskraal Stadium in Athlone. His efforts were rewarded, when in 2004, he was selected for the South African team at the 2004 Summer Paralympics in Athens. Initially classified as a T13 category athlete, for competitors with limited vision, he entered two events in Athens; the 100 metres sprint (T13) and the long jump (F13). He finished sixth overall in the long jump and his time of 11.34 in the heats of the 100m saw him finish two hundredths of a second outside the qualification time for the finals. [2] Two years later he won his first major international medal, taking bronze in 100 metre sprint at the 2006 IPC Athletics World Championships in Assen. [2]

In 2008 Ntutu competed at his second Paralympics, travelling to China to compete in the Beijing Games. He no longer competed in the long jump, but still entered two events, the 100 metre and 200 metre sprints. In the 100 metres he surpassed his achievement at the 2004 Games by qualifying through to the finals, where he finished fifth with a time of 11.06 seconds. [2] Although finishing in the top three qualifiers in the heats of the 200 metres, he finished a distant eighth in the finals. [2]

In the buildup to the 2012 Summer Paralympics in London, Ntutu entered his second World Championships, this time held in Christchurch, New Zealand. He entered all three sprint events, winning silver behind Russia's Alexey Labzin in the 100 metres and narrowly missing the podium with fourth place in the 400 metres. [2] His biggest breakthrough of his career came at the London 2012 Paralympics, where he qualified for both the 100 metre and 200 metre sprints, making the finals of both. He finished sixth in the 200 metre race, but in the 100 metres he took the bronze medal, beating Labzin in a photo finish for the third spot. [2] [5]

At the 2013 IPC Athletics World Championships in Lyon, Ntutu came away a double medalist, winning a silver in the 100 metres (behind Ireland's Jason Smyth) and a first major medal in the 200 metres, a third placed bronze. [2] Two years later Ntutu sight was deemed to have deteriorated and he was reclassified as a T12 classification athlete. This allowed him to enter his first African Games, as traditionally the T13 sprint was not contested. Held in Brazzaville in the Republic of Congo, Ntutu entered the 2015 African Games competing in the T12 200 metre sprint. He took gold, finishing ahead of countryman and fellow ex-Athlone School pupil Hilton Langenhoven. [4] [6]

At the 2015 IPC Athletics World Championships in Doha Ntutu took silver in the 200 metres but he was disqualified from the 100 metre sprint. The next year he added a second Paralympic medal when he took a silver in the 100 metres at the 2016 Games in Rio. He also competed in the 200 metre race but failed to qualify for the finals. [2]

Related Research Articles

Sanaa Benhama is a Paralympic athlete from Morocco competing mainly in category T13 sprint events. She has competed at two Summer Paralympics, most notably at the 2008 Summer Paralympics in Beijing, China where she won three gold medals dominating the sprint field in her class.

Ilse Hayes, also known as Ilse Carstens, is a Paralympian athlete from South Africa competing mainly in category T13 sprint events. Hayes has competed for her country at four Summer Paralympics beginning with the 2004 Summer Paralympics in Athens, Greece. She has won medals at each of the four games including two gold medals, both in the long jump, at Beijing (2008) and London (2012). As well as her Paralympic success Hayes is a multiple medal winner at World Championship level.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">El Salvador at the Paralympics</span> Sporting event delegation

El Salvador first competed in the Paralympic Games at the 2000 Summer Paralympics in Sydney, Australia. It has participated in the Summer Paralympic Games every four years since that time. El Salvador has never taken part in the Winter Paralympics, and until Tokyo 2020, no Salvadorian had won a Paralympic medal. In 2021, Herbert Aceituno became the first athlete to win a medal, earning bronze in powerlifting at the 59 kg category.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marcel Hug</span> Swiss wheelchair racer

Marcel Eric Hug is a Paralympian athlete from Switzerland competing in category T54 wheelchair racing events. Hug, nicknamed 'The Silver Bullet', has competed in four Summer Paralympic Games for Switzerland, winning two bronze medals in his first Games in Athens in 2004. In 2010 he set four world records in four days, and at the 2011 World Championships he won a gold in the 10,000 metres and four silver medals, losing the gold in three events to long term rival David Weir. This rivalry continued into the 2012 Summer Paralympics in London, where Hug won two silvers, in the 800m and the marathon. In the 2013 World Championships Hug dominated the field, winning five golds and a silver. During the 2016 Summer Paralympics in Rio, Hug was one of the most consistent competitors in the T54 class, winning two golds, in the 800 m and marathon, and two silvers medals, in the 1500m and 5000m.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ola Abidogun</span> British Paralympic athlete

Ola Abidogun is a British athlete who competes in T46 sprinting events. He competed for England at the 2010 Commonwealth Games, and was part of the British team at the 2012 Summer Paralympics where he took bronze in the 100m sprint. He has won multiple medals at the junior level and as a senior won a silver in the 2014 European Championships.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rhys Jones (para-athlete)</span> Welsh Paralympic athlete

Rhys Jones is a Paralympic athlete from Wales competing in category T37 sprinting events. Jones qualified for the 2012 Summer Paralympics in the 100m and 200m sprint. Making the final of the 200m at his first major games. From Clydach Vale, Rhondda

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stephanie Millward</span> British Paralympic swimmer

Stephanie Millward, is a British Paralympic swimmer.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Johanna Benson</span> Namibian Paralympic athlete

Johanna Benson is a Paralympian athlete from Walvis Bay, Namibia. She competes in T37 long jump and sprint events and at the 2012 Summer Paralympics in London she won the women's 200 metres race in her classification. Her 200 metres success in London made her the first Paralympic gold medalist in Namibia's history.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nikol Rodomakina</span> Russian Paralympic athlete

Nikol Rodomakina is a Paralympic athlete from Russia competing mainly in category T46 sprint and F46 long jump events. Between 2011 and 2013 Rodomakina was World, Paralympic and European champion in the F46 long jump.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Evgenii Shvetcov</span> Russian Paralympic athlete

Evgeny Shvetsov is a Paralympian track and field athlete from Russia competing mainly in category T36 sprint and middle-distance events. A triple gold medal winner at the 2012 Summer Paralympics, Shvetcov set three world records in his class between 2012 and 2013.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">South Africa at the 2016 Summer Paralympics</span> Sporting event delegation

South Africa entered 45 athletes in the 2016 Summer Paralympics in Rio de Janeiro from 7 - 18 September 2016. The country qualified athletes in archery, athletics, canoeing, cycling, equestrian, powerlifting, rowing, swimming, shooting and wheelchair tennis.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alexander Zverev (sprinter)</span> Russian Paralympic sprinter

Alexander Zverev is a Paralympian athlete from Russia competing mainly in category T13 sprint events. Zverev has competed at two Summer Paralympic Games, 2008 in Beijing and 2012 at London. At the 2012 Games he won silver in the 400m sprint.

Omar Monterola is a Paralympian athlete from Venezuela competing in category T37 sprinting events. Monterola qualified for the 2012 Summer Paralympics in the 100m, 200m and 400m sprints. He qualified for the finals of all three, winning the bronze medal in the 200m event.

Michał Derus is a Polish track and field athlete, competing in the T47 disability classification for athletes with an impairment to a lower arm.

Moatez 'Mo' Jomni is a British Paralympic athlete who competes mainly in category T53 sprint events and middle-distance events.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">David Henson</span> British Paralympic athlete

David Henson, MBE is a British parasport athlete competing mainly in T42 classification sprint events. He has represented Britain at the Invictus Games, World and European Championships and in 2016 he was selected for the Summer Paralympics in Rio, winning a bronze medal in the 200m sprint (T42).

Raciel Gonzalez Isidoria is a Paralympian athlete from Cuba competing mainly in T46 classification sprint events.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Daniel Jørgensen</span> Danish Paralympic athlete

Daniel Wagner Jørgensen, who also competes as Daniel Wagner or Daniel Jørgensen, is a leg amputee Danish Paralympic sportsman who has competed in both track and field athletics and snowboarding. As an athlete he specialises in the long jump, but also competes in sprint events.

Johannes Nambala is a Paralympian athlete from Namibia competing mainly in category T13 sprint events. In 2013 he became the first Namibian to win a gold medal at an IPC Athletics World Championships, when he won the 400m sprint in Lyon. As well as World Championship success Nambala has also won two silver Paralympic medals, both silver, and both won at the 2016 Summer Paralympics in Rio de Janeiro.

Felix Streng is a German Paralympic track and field athlete. A single leg amputee, Streng competes in both sprint and long jump events, competing in the T44 classification. He has won medals at both European and World Championship level and was part of the German Athletics at the 2016 Summer Paralympics – Men's 4 × 100 metres relay team that won gold at the 2016 Summer Paralympics in Rio.

References

  1. "Ndodomzi Jonathan Ntutu". news24.com. Retrieved 20 August 2016.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 "Ntutu, Jonathan". IPC . Retrieved 20 August 2016.
  3. 1 2 3 4 Felix, Jason (10 October 2012). "Politicians' photos to make way for Paralympian stars". The Star. Retrieved 15 October 2016.
  4. 1 2 Etheridge, Mark (14 September 2015). "South Africa: Ntutu and Langenhoven Race to Games Gold and Silver for SA". allafrica.com. Retrieved 15 October 2016.
  5. Chadband, Ian (1 September 2012). "Jason Smyth the fastest Paralympic runner of all-time as he sets new world record to win T13 100m gold". telegraph.co.uk. Retrieved 15 October 2016.
  6. "7 medals in Brazaville". back-track.co.za. Retrieved 15 October 2016.