Six years ago Luvo Manyonga was a crystal meth ‘tic’ addict. Now he is an Olympic silver medalist and his journey from the townships to ‘flying to Rio 2016 glory’ has been well documented across the web.
I feel so blessed to have recently had the privilege of briefly interviewing this extraordinary athlete, and hugely inspiring human, here on The Legacy Project to try and go a bit deeper to find out what he believes contributed towards his Olympic achievement in Rio, where, now almost 3 years later, he is in his life and what it takes for this supreme South African athlete to keep believing that he will still be the first man ever to jump more than 9 metres.
Contact Us at WeSpeak Global and follow us on Twitter
I think my definition of success has changed over the years. When I was younger success was probably more about my athletic achievements and being the best in the world in long jump.
Although that is still there, now success for me also incorporates elements like happiness, helping others and giving of your best. I know now that no matter how far I jump, success is defined by so much more in life.
If I can inspire others through not only my athletics career, but through the man I am, I think I will have been successful.
Ever since I first competed in the Long Jump at school I have wanted to make the world record my own, and be the first person to jump over 9m.
Those athletic goals get me out of bed every day and help me push through the hard training. But more than that, I am driven by the need to show people that anything is possible if you commit to something and focus on working hard at that thing. I want my life to be an example to others of what is possible.
I love competing and that’s a large part of being successful. I love the pressure moment and competing in front of a packed stadium – the bigger moment the more I enjoy it, and so instead of becoming tense, I can actually relax more and thrive on the atmosphere.
‘You are made for more than this’ given to me by a friend when I was really struggling. It helped me see that I had so much more to achieve and give in both athletics and life.
We all have some self-doubt and negativity sometimes and for me it was probably when I was making a comeback before the Rio Olympic Games.
After a few years away from the sport I wondered how I would do – but I very quickly found the passion for the sport and competing again, and this helped me to focus on training hard and enjoying every minute of being back in the game!
One of the lessons I have learnt is to just focus on yourself and not worry what others are doing. As soon as you start to focus on everybody else you lose sight of what you should be doing.
I still have the World Record to get!
Of course, I want part of my legacy to be that I broke the World Record and became the first person to jump over 9 metres – I want to be known as the best there has ever been in Long Jump.
But I also want my athletics achievements to leave a more meaningful and lasting legacy – a legacy that inspires people to overcome difficulties in life and reach for their own dreams.
Jonathan “sprinkles” elements of wisdom and humor to create a learning environment that is light-hearted yet purpose-filled. In his talks, Jonathan provides the “wow” that audience members want and the substance that meeting planners value. Jonathan’s techniques and teaching style come from experience. Having faced many of the same personal, financial, and organizational challenges his […]
Sara Sutton Legacy Project is the CEO and founder of FlexJobs, an award-winning, innovative career website for telecommuting, flexible, freelance and part-time job listings, and founder of Remote.co, a one-stop resource for remote teams and companies, and the 1 Million for Work Flexibility initiative. She was named as a Young Global Leader (class of 2014) […]
People: Profit: Planet: The purpose-driven ‘holy grail’ of sustainable enterprise moving forward and the beacon to which Saloni Doshi, social entrepreneur now goes about daily life as owner of EcoEnclose, based in Colorado, USA. Saloni and her team at EcoEnclose help thousands of small and medium sized businesses around the world ship their products in […]
Matthew Waldman is a New York based artist and designer most prominently known for creating NOOKA Inc. a lab dedicated to exploring universal communication via form, language and fashion. My Definition Of Success | I have a fairly traditional view of success, one based on esteem and stature in one’s field or based on one’s work being […]
Joanne Harris (MBE) was born in Barnsley in 1964, of a French mother and an English father. She studied Modern and Mediaeval Languages at Cambridge and was a teacher for fifteen years, during which time she published three novels, including Chocolat (1999), which was made into an Oscar-nominated film starring Juliette Binoche . Since then, […]
Ben started in TV more than 14 years ago where he was involved in both live and pre-recorded programs at Namibia’s one and only national broadcaster: NBC. Fast-forward several years, he found himself in the fantastical world of TV Commercials hoping this industry to be full of excitement, glitz and glamour. Needless to say, this […]
Ron Edmondson is a pastor and church leader passionate about planting churches, helping established churches thrive, and assisting pastors and those in ministry think through leadership, strategy and life. Ron has over 20 years business experience, mostly as a self-employed business owner, and he’s been helping church grow vocationally for over 10 years. Ron Edmondson […]
Empower, impact and independence are three significant words to Tracey Gilmore. Formerly the co-founder of Dress 2 Impress, a non profit organisation that helps low income and unemployed women prepare to enter the workplace, Tracey joined up with Tracey Chambers and together they founded The Clothing Bank. Today, the work of this generous spirit enables […]
These remain the property of its owner and are not affiliated with or endorsed by WeSpeak Global.
Our Mission
© All rights reserved 2025. Created using VOXEL THEME
