Wayde van Niekerk is tipped by many to become sprinting's new icon following Usain Bolt's retirement. He picked up silver in Thursday's 200m, to accompany his 400m gold from World Championships in London.But following the 200m climax, Van Niekerk surprisingly broke down in tears during an interview with BBC.As you can see by scrolling down to the video below, a troublesome and turbulent few days appeared to have caught up with the talented South African.

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During a week dogged by controversy involving Botswana's Isaac Makwala, Van Niekerk admitted he felt he had not been given the respect he deserved. 

In the immediate aftermath of Thursday's race, the 25-year-old had to turn away from the camera to regain his composure - see below.

"I really feel like I worked hard for tonight. I gave it my all and I think I've proven over and over again I deserve what I've achieved, it was a tough week for myself. After the 400m, there was quite a lot of people that felt I didn't deserve it."

Makwala was ruled out of competing in the 400m after diagnosed with the Norovirus and appeared to suggest that a conspiracy had blocked his participation.

He said: "When I came to this championship, my aim was to win the 400m. I had a 100 percent chance to win the 400m. I feel so angry. I had a bigger chance in the 400m than the 200m. It was obvious I was going to get a medal.

"There is something fishy they do not want to tell us. It is not that I was sick; there is something more to it...Usain Bolt is out now, so the IAAF wants someone [Van Niekerk] to be the face of Athletics."

Michael Johnson, US 400m legend, added fuel to the fire by saying:

"Wayde van Niekerk is an IAAF favorite and now the only person that was his challenger has pulled out. Conspiracy theories are going round. Who is behind this?"

The episode has left Van Niekerk, who was surprisingly beaten by Turkey's Ramil Guliyev in the 200m final, with a sour taste.

He added: "It really did upset me a bit, especially the amount of respect I've shown each and every competitor I compete against, including Makwala, I've always shown him massive respect, and for him to come out and, I think, mention my name among something fishy happening in the IAAF, pointing me out as the favorite, knowing how hard I've been working the last few years.

"If I was an overnight success, and this was my first gold medal, I could have accepted a statement like that. But I have been putting out great performances the last two years now, including this competition's double. I definitely deserve way more respect from my competitors.

"We are not here to make friends, We are here to compete, and I've learned a great lesson now. I definitely will be taking the future a bit differently and focusing on myself... I gave him his dues when he was ahead of me. He's broken my record, I've broken his record, and there's been continuous respect, so for him to come out with such a statement is a bit disappointing."

However, the South African is determined not to let the episode derail his progress:

"I'm glad I could come out today and put out a good fight. I really believe this is the beginning of so much more that I can achieve. I work just as hard as every other competitor I compete against. I show everyone else respect, and I think I didn't get the respect I deserved after the 400 meters. It's only the beginning. I am going to put in so much more hard work and show my dominance."