On the spot with Ernst Narib

NATIONAL men's 200m and 400m sprint champion Ernst Gideon Narib is one of the country's most adored track athletes.

The decorated 28-year-old globetrotter endeared himself to his peers even further last year when he launched the Narib Track & Field Golden Spikes Series in response to the lack of athletics meetings in the country.



Here are his career highlights:



Who was your sports hero as a child?

Michael Johnson and Frank Fredericks.



Who was your best teammate?

Leroy Bock, 400 m hurdler, and our World Student Games team for China 2011 was awesome too.



Who is the toughest rival you've faced?

Isak Makwala from Botswana.



Who is the best coach you worked under?

Lucky Gawanab.



What is your most memorable competition?

The African Senior Championships in Asaba, Nigeria, when we broke the longstanding men's 4 x 400m national record.



What is the highlight of your career to date?

Qualifying for the Commonwealth Games in 2014 for 400m and becoming the second fastest man in Namibian history in the discipline, but I was not accepted due to technicalities. I ran 46,17 seconds and the standard was 46,4 seconds at the time.



What has been the lowest moment of your career to date?

Not making the finals of each and every All African Games and World Students Games. I have fallen short at the semi-finals so many times.



What has been the most memorable performance by a Namibian athlete/team for you?

Helalia Johannes winning a bronze medal at the 2019 IAAF World Championships in Doha. The Namibian rugby team's performance against the All Blacks at the 2019 World Cup was amazing, even though they lost. They showed so much bravery, and that's what our country represents.