11-time All-American Shaun Maswanganyi forced to exit African Championships due to track meet's poor organization

Shaun Maswanganyi, South Africa’s US-based sprinter, is the latest athlete to bid an early goodbye to the African Championships in Douala, Cameroon. The 23-year-old voiced his disappointment at the poor organization of the continental event.

Shaun Maswanganyi previously lamented about using wooden starter clappers instead of a starting gun since the athletes had complained about the sound produced by the gun being too low.

The Carl Lewis-coached athlete added that his health was at risk since there was no variety of meals to cater to his allergies and the accommodation was also an issue. The flexibility of movement around the stadium was also an issue that the South African pointed out.

"Long story short, the organization of the whole meet (African Champs) is absolutely dismal, to say the least. We, as athletes, are constantly told to ‘do as the Romans do’ and are expected to perform in the harshest conditions. If nothing changes, I’ll be in Houston by Saturday," Shaun Maswanganyi said.

"I wish I were exaggerating when I say my health is at risk, as there is hardly any accommodation for my allergies. I can only imagine what other athletes are experiencing, from sharing beds to food-related problems. Additionally, transport has been a significant issue," he added.

The South African also said that he would be speaking more about the African Championships on his YouTube channel.

"That being said, I booked my flight this morning, and I’m currently typing this at the airport. I vlogged the whole meet, so I’ll be posting on my YouTube channel soon. If we don’t look out for ourselves as athletes, no one else will. Fin," the 23-year-old said.

The former Africa Under-20 champion is not the only athlete who observed the challenges since world 100m silver medallist Letsile Tebogo and Africa’s fastest woman Marie Josée Ta Lou-Smith had earlier voiced their frustrations on the same.

Ta Lou-Smith was irked by the poor transport system with Tebogo complaining about being kept waiting and the overall poor organisation of the event. The Ivorian sprinter failed to show up in the women’s 100m with Tebogo being disqualified after an alleged false start. Other top athletes including Favour Ofili and Rosemary Chukwuma of Nigeria also pulled out of the event.

Shaun Maswanganyi on battling "imposter syndrome" and bouncing back courtesy of his coach Carl Lewis

Shaun Maswanganyi at the Tokyo Olympics

South Africa’s sprinting ace opened up about his debut at the delayed 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games when he felt that he did not belong to be present.

The youngster, however, noted that his results proved otherwise since he was able to reach the semifinal of both the 100m and 200m. He finished third in his 200m and sixth in the 100m semi-final.

Speaking to the Olympics.com, the World University Games 100m silver medallist said:

“You get that sense of imposter syndrome where you feel like ‘I should not be here’. I had that sense of feeling at my first Olympics despite my performances. When I got to the line running the semi-finals, I was like, 'Oh, okay, I've arrived'. That’s kind of that moment where I realize I deserve to be here.”

Being coached by Carl Lewis, a nine-time Olympic champion, Maswanganyi disclosed earlier in June 2024 that the American legend played a great role in helping him overcome challenges on and off the track.

Maswanganyi admitted that having Lewis as a coach is special and the legendary athlete has helped him in terms of mental and physical strength. He added that Lewis is more than a coach to him and is more of a father.

"To have Carl Lewis as a coach is definitely special. I speak about it all the time, he’s more than just a coach to me. He’s more than a mentor. He’s a father figure in many aspects," Shaun Maswanganyi told SportsBoom.com.

"He’s always there for me, and at the end of the day he’s done everything that I probably aspire to do in athletics so he’s the man for the job and I’m just grateful to have him in my life and I just pray that our relationship just keeps getting stronger and stronger and he keeps being my mentor on and off the track."

Earlier in June 2024, Shaun Maswanganyi competed at the NCAA Division I Outdoor Championships in Eugene. Individually, he competed in the 100m and 200m events, finishing seventh and sixth respectively.

Shaun Maswanganyi was also a part of the 4*100m relay team, that finished third in the event.