Antonie Matthys Nortje (born 2 February 2002) is a South African sprinter who specializes in the

400 metres The 400 metres, or 400-meter dash, is a sprint event in track and field competitions. It has been featured in the athletics (sport), athletics programme at the Summer Olympics since 1896 for men and since 1964 for women. On a standard outdoor runn ...

Early life

Born in Pretoria, South Africa. He grew up in the small town of Bronkhorstspruit after which attending Hoërskool Garsfontein for his high school education, where he developed a passion for athletics. He was a member of Athletics - Gauteng North. He moved to the United States and attended University of Texas at Austin, University of California, Los Angeles and Texas A&M University.

Career

He was the bronze medallist over

at the World Athletics U20 Championships in

2021 File:2021 collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: the James Webb Space Telescope was launched in 2021; Protesters in Yangon, Myanmar following the 2021 Myanmar coup d'état, coup d'état; A civil demonstration against the October–November 2021 ...

in Nairobi. At the final

PAC-12 Championship The Pac-12 Football Championship Game is an annual college football game held by the Pac-12 Conference to determine the season's conference champion. The game from the 2011–2021 seasons had the champion of the North Division against the champi ...

, Antonie placed second overall, securing podium finishes in the 200m, 4×100m, and 4×400m events. His performance qualified him for the West Regionals, where he won both his Preliminary and Quarterfinal races, advancing to the 2024 NCAA Championships. At the NCAA Championships, Antonie earned All-American honors by placing third in his Semi-Final. He ran as part of the South African 4x400m relay team at the 2024 World Relays Championships in

Nassau, Bahamas Nassau ( ) is the capital and largest city of the Bahamas. With a population of 274,400 as of 2016, or just over 70% of the entire population of the Bahamas, Nassau is commonly defined as a primate city, dwarfing all other towns in the country. ...

. He ran the third leg in the final as the South African team won silver and guaranteed a place at the 2024 Paris Olympics. In June 2024, he was selected for the South African team for the

2024 Paris Olympics ) , nations = TBA , athletes = 10,500 ''(quota limit)'' , events = 329 in 32 sports (48 disciplines) , opening = 26 July 2024 , closing = 11 August 2024 , opened_by = , stadium = Stade de France Jardins du Trocadéro and River Seine , summe ...

where they qualified for the final and placed 5th overall while setting a new National Record of 2:58:12.

References

2002 births Living people South African male sprinters Athletes from Gauteng 21st-century South African people UCLA Bruins men's track and field athletes Olympic athletes for South Africa Athletes (track and field) at the 2024 Summer Olympics {{SouthAfrica-athletics-bio-stub