Luvo Manyonga missed out on the gold medal in the men’s long jump by one-tenth of an inch, a disappointment that nonetheless comes with a place in the record books: He is just the second South African to ever medal in the event.
There are countless stories of individuals who make the most of second chances in life, but long jump world champion Luvo Manyonga’s is a particularly special one.
But Manyonga seemed destined for this level of stardom as far back as the late summer of 2011, when the then 20-year-old burst onto the scene of international competition with a fifth-place finish at the World Championships.
Only a year later, his world fell apart. In early 2012, Manyonga began using tik, a version of crystal methamphetamine popular in Cape Town. In March of that same year, he tested positive for the substance at a meet in Stellenbosch, South Africa, and was banned from the competition for 18 months
At his lowest point, Manyonga was on the verge of death, he said.
“I have done things of which I am truly ashamed, like burglaries, stealing mobile phones just to get money to buy the drug. You lose all perception of what is right or wrong. All that matters is to get your fix,” recalled Luvo with a sad tinge in his eyes.
“I can honestly say that I hit rock bottom and my life was a living hell after I was banned for using drugs and the way I was behaving was a one way route towards self-destruction,” he added.
It wasn’t until 2015, when Manyonga moved from his hometown of Mbekweni to Pretoria, one of the country’s three capital cities, that a once-promising career began to reclaim its potential.
He did so with the help of his coaches, who first helped Manyonga kick his addiction before walking him back on the track. The first was Mario Smith, who petitioned to lower Manyonga’s two-year suspension to 18 months before dying in a car accident in 2014.
Determined to redeem himself from what he unashamedly calls ‘a big-time stuff-up’ he made an immediate impact on his return to competition, posting an Olympic standard jump of 8.20 metres.
And Manyonga has definitely proved his determination as he claimed yet another silver at the Olympic stadium in Rio this morning.
Manyonga produced a mammoth personal jump in the fourth round, improving his previous best by seven centimetres with a leap of 8.37m to become the second South African long jumper behind Khotso Mokoena to win the Olympic silver.
It was hard to tell who between Manyonga and his coach Neil Cornelius wore the biggest smile following his silver-medal-winning jump.
Manyonga is known as a jovial character on the South African jumping scene, where he would do back-flips in celebration or a little dance.
Cornelius admitted it was hard not to get swept away by Manyonga’s positive attitude.
“It has been more than exciting than difficult or anything like that. I say to people it is like the first time getting into a Ferrari,” Cornelius said.
“You are a little bit afraid, but you have this big smile on your face and you just want to go fast.”
There are many lessons to be learned from 25-year-old Luvo’s life journey and for one thing he has made a promise to himself to make the most of his second chance.
His advice to youngsters who consider experimenting with mind-altering, mentally manipulative drugs like ‘TIK’ that consume your whole life very simple and is also his life motto — “Don’t do it! It is not worth it.”
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What an amazing achievement ! You must be incredibly proud of yourself as – I’m certain every South African is 😋 Keep on keeping on!