LANKY South African long jumper, Luvo Manyonga, cannot wait to get back onto the sand pit.
The 29-year-old Olympic silver medalist and former world champion is excited about competing again after the IAAF announced a new date for the Diamond League series in Europe, starting in August.
Manyonga and long-term rival Ruswahl Samaai, have been consistent for South Africa in the sand pit for the past five years.
After cancelling some of the Diamond League series events due to the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic, Europe is ready to bring back track and field action again and Manyonga is one of the athletes who wants to be part of the thrilling action.
He won the series in 2017, collecting more than R500 000 and a beautiful diamond to go with it.
His manager Lee-Roy Newtown said his star athlete is preparing himself at home, closer to his family.
“Luvo is in the Eastern Cape with his family and he knows the importance of staying fit,” said Newton.
The energetic jumper, who was based at the University of Pretoria before moving to Port Elizabeth, broke the Diamond League record with a leap of 8.61m in Shanghai, China in 2017 just four centimetres shy of his African and personal best of 8.65m he set in April at the SA Senior track and field championships in Potchefstroom three years ago.
This year, the senior track and field championships were set to be held in Pretoria but was scrapped off the SA athletics calendar because of coronavirus.
Manyonga is hoping to rediscover his old form when he travels to Europe again to compete against some of the best jumpers in the world.
Newton, a former South African sprinter, said Manyonga, who finished fourth in the world at the IAAF World Championships in Doha, Qatar last year, is eager to get back in action.
The first meeting of the Diamond League series will take place in Monaco on 14 August, Britain, Sweden, Switzerland and the USA will also host the popular league series until the conclusion on 17 October.