Five NWU athletes earn call-up to South African squad for World U20 Championships in Oregon

by Phenyo Mokgothu

Five athletes from the North-West University (NWU) have been selected for the South African under 20 squad that will compete at the 2026 World Athletics U20 Championships in Oregon, USA, from 5 to 9 August.

The championships, to be held at Hayward Field at the University of Oregon, will bring together leading junior athletes from across the world in what is regarded as one of the biggest international competitions for emerging track and field talent.

The NWU athletes named in the preliminary national squad are Werner Gouws (800 m), Bertus van der Linde (1 500 m), Jan-Hendrik Heymans (javelin), Andrea Steynberg (1 500 m) and Mariné Grobler (javelin).

Jan-Hendrik heads to Oregon as one of the leading prospects in the competition after having been ranked first in the world in the under 20 javelin. He is also the South African under 20 gold medallist and studies mechanical engineering at the NWU.

Mariné goes into the championships ranked fourth in the world in javelin. She is studying health sciences with sport coaching and human movement sciences.

Werner, who will compete in the 800 m, won the under 20 Athletics South Africa national title earlier this year. He is currently studying towards a BCom in chartered accounting.

Middle-distance athlete Bertus, selected for the 1 500 m, is ranked second among South African athletes in his event and is studying biokinetics.

Andrea secured her place in the national squad after winning the South African under 20 1 500 m title. She is studying consumer sciences in food product management.

The World Athletics U20 Championships have served as a launchpad for several global athletics stars over the years. The 2026 edition will mark the return of the event to Oregon, which previously hosted the championships in 2014 and the senior World Athletics Championships in 2022.

The NWU wishes team South Africa and the five representatives from the university success at the championships. Their selection reflects the strength of the athletics programme of the institution and its contribution to national sport.