OPINION: Van Niekerk’s presence in the relay will offer a safer medal in Paris

It’s unlikely to happen, but it might be best for Wayde van Niekerk to drop his individual event at this year’s Paris Olympics.

I know, it’s a little out there, but hear me out.

The 400m event is widely considered the toughest in track athletics, with athletes having to dig incredibly deep in the closing stages of what is a very long sprint.

And in recent years, since returning from a long-term knee injury, Van Niekerk has struggled to compete over three rounds of competition.

Even if he gets through the rounds of the individual 400m in the French capital in August, there are questions about whether he will have anything left to contribute to the men’s 4x400m relay.

In his absence, the national team earned the silver medal in the final at World Relays earlier this month, proving they have the depth to put up a fight without him.

In the pressure-filled cauldron of the Olympic Games, however, competition is going to be tougher than it was in Bahamas, and we might need a full-strength squad if we want a medal.

Difficult to beat

Van Niekerk will no doubt believe that he has the ability to reach the podium in the individual 400m sprint, and he does, but if we’re objective we have to admit he is not among the favourites.

If he is at his best in the relay, however, the men’s 4x400m team will be very difficult to beat.

And with a sufficient gap between the events, if Van Niekerk and rising 400m star Lythe Pillay can also run the mixed 4x400m relay (they still need to qualify) they might well give the SA team enough power to give them another medal chance.

It might seem silly to suggest world record holder Van Niekerk (and potentially Pillay as well) should sacrifice his individual event, and if he gets on the podium in the 400m final he will justify the decision to focus on himself ahead of the relay.

But if he doesn’t get a medal, and the relay teams also miss out, it’s going to be disappointing.

Equally valuable

Perhaps there’s a stigma, from the point of view of athletes, that relay medals are not as valuable as individual medals.

But for South Africa, all podium places are going to be equally valuable, and though it will be a tremendous sacrifice, if Van Niekerk drops his individual event he’s going to give us our best chance in the relays.

Again, it’s unlikely to happen, but it’s worth considering. We’re not going to rake in a lot of medals in Paris, and we need to take what we can get.