Sinesipho Dambile finishes fourth in Budapest, but he’s still had a great 2026 - TimesLIVE

Dambile had set the pace in the semifinals earlier in the evening, winning the second heat in 19.80 ahead of Canada’s 2021 Olympic champion Andre De Grasse (19.87) and 2025 world championship bronze medallist Bryan Levell of Jamaica (20.08).

But the real danger was lurking in the other semifinal, where Kenny Bednarek of the US crossed the line first in 19.86, in front of countryman Courtney Lindsey (19.89) and Botswana’s Letsile Tebogo (19.96).

And in the final that trio hit another gear with Bednarek completing the 100m-200m double with victory in a 19.52 world lead.

Tebogo, the Olympic champion, was second in a 19.76 season’s best and Lindsey third in 19.79, another season’s best.

Dambile was never in the race, coming out the bend well off the pace, but he showed heart and grit as he fought all the way to the finish line to take fourth in 19.91, one-hundredth of a second in front of De Grasse.

Even with his podium miss in Hungary, it’s still been a standout year for the 24-year-old who hails from Qonce in the Eastern Cape, as King William’s Town used to be called.

Victory in Glasgow, one triumph on the Diamond League circuit as well as second place in the Diamond League Final a week earlier, two personal bests and nine sub-20 performances this season, including eight in a row since June.

He dipped under 20 seconds for the first time last year, going 19.97 at the world championships in Tokyo.

This year he’s been below 19.90 on five occasions — six if one includes his performance in Scotland where he had wind assistance — and below 19.80 twice.

Dambile went 19.77 in April and 19.74 in June.

The sprinter has made a huge step up this year and if he can carry on with this trajectory and break Clarence Munyai’s 19.69 national record from 2018 and start challenging the 19.50 mark he’ll thrust himself into medal contention for next year’s world championships in Beijing and the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles.

The only other South Africans to make finals in Budapest this weekend were Gift Leotlela and Akani Simbine, who finished sixth and eighth in Saturday’s 100m final.

Zakithi Nene, Marioné Fourie and Prudence Sekgodiso all failed to advance beyond the semifinals.