A voice for all walkers!

Transcription

1 Number 9: January 2017 Supported by the AGN Racewalk Commission A voice for all walkers! Who is the top racewalker in South Africa? Comparisons are always difficult and often cruel. But sometimes not comparing, or comparing with unequal comparators, can be worse. So here is the annual comparison of all racewalkers having taken out the effects of age and gender, based on the latest (2015) WMA racewalking tables used for age grading. Some may find the results startling for some of us who know many of the stunning athletes around us we are already expecting what is to come! To keep the lists to a reasonable length I have cut off the lists at around 75%. This is an arbitrary decision, but it does relate approximately to what one could consider national level athletes. The intention of this article is certainly not to be cruel nor to act as a disincentive. In fact just the opposite! It is here to incentivise every reader to do just that little bit more. I certainly know how hard I had to walk to make the cutoff for the article!! If your name is not here and you suspect that I do not have the results of your race, or if you did take part in a race covered here and would like to know your standing please contact me. 3000m track 1 Lebogang Shange Pretoria AGN 01 Mar 15 M 24 11: % 2 Wayne Synman Germiston 25-Feb-12 M 27 11: % 3km Road 1 Aweries Durando ASA Interprovincial ASWD 08-Oct-16 M 13 15: % 2 Colling Juan ASA Interprovincial BOL 08-Oct-16 M 13 15: % 3 Walters Tiaano ASA Interprovincial BOL 08-Oct-16 M 13 15: % 4 Nyivana Ondela Alex ASA Interprovincial 08-Oct-16 M 13 15: % 5 Webb Shane ASA Interprovincial ASWD 08-Oct-16 F 12 17: % 6 Toerien Nikita ASA Interprovincial WPA 08-Oct-16 F 12 17: % Since I have not found a reliable source of age group records and because I anyway believe that we should be comparing to the world open record, all of the percentages are calculated in comparison to the world open record. 5000m Track 1 Lebogang Shange Cork RSA 07-Jul-15 M 26 00:18: % 2 Elsa Meyer WMA Perth 2016 Aus 27-Oct-16 F 70 00:30: % 3 Wayne Snyman Pretoria (Tuks OpeninAGN 11-Jun-16 M 31 00:19: % 4 Barbara Nell WMA Perth 2016 Aus 27-Oct-16 F 61 00:27: % 5 Annatjie Greyvenstein SA Athletics Champs PGNMA 13-May-16 F 71 00:31: % 6 Jurgen Spencer SA Athletics Champs PWPA 19-May-16 M 76 00:31: % 7 Hildegard Vey WMA Perth 2016 Aus 27-Oct-16 F 75 00:35: % 8 Winnie Koekemoer SA Athletics Champs PGNMA 13-May-16 F 65 00:31: % 9 Gerard Van den Raad SA Athletics Champs PGNMA 16-May-16 M 72 00:31: % 10 Ann Stead SA Athletics Champs PWPA 13-May-16 F 69 00:34: % 11 Ray Patterson SA Athletics Champs PGNMA 13-May-16 M 63 00:28: % 12 Johannes Van Zyl SA Athletics Champs PWPA 13-May-16 M 67 00:29: % 13 Frieda Blignaut SA Athletics Champs PWPA 13-May-16 F 65 00:32: % 14 Kevin Phillips SA Athletics Champs PCGMA 13-May-16 M 52 00:26: % 15 Chris Callaghan Pretoria (Tuks OpeninAGN 11-Jun-16 M 63 00:29: % 16 Retha Knoetze SA Athletics Champs PGNMA 13-May-16 F 61 00:32: % 17 Avril Coats SA Athletics Champs PCGMA 13-May-16 F 59 00:31: % 18 Lucia Willemse SA Athletics Champs PGNMA 13-May-16 F 61 00:32: % 19 Celeste Scheepers Pretoria (Tuks OpeninAGN 11-Jun-16 F 56 00:30: % 20 Ray Goatley SA Athletics Champs PKZN 20-May-16 M 79 00:36: % 21 Jan Bester SA Athletics Champs PGNMA 13-May-16 M 56 00:28: % 22 Carol Van der Walt SA Athletics Champs PGNMA 13-May-16 F 66 00:34: % 23 Susan Smith SA Athletics Champs PKZN 13-May-16 F 60 00:32: % 24 Frans Oosthuizen SA Athletics Champs PGNMA 13-May-16 M 54 00:27: % 25 Jaap Willemse WMA Perth 2016 Aus 26-Oct-16 M 60 00:29: % 26 Marius Bosman SA Athletics Champs PGNMA 13-May-16 M 59 00:29: % 27 Fred Clements SA Athletics Champs PGNMA 17-May-16 M 72 00:33: % 28 Margaret Norton SA Athletics Champs PWPA 13-May-16 F 76 00:41: % 29 Carol Rothero SA Athletics Champs PCGMA 13-May-16 F 59 00:32: % 5km Road 1 Nolene Van Rensburg ASA Interprovincial ASWD 08-Oct-16 F 15 26: % 2 Kgosi Ngake ASA Interprovincial 08-Oct-16 M 15 25: % 3 Moné Geldenhuys ASA Interprovincial ASWD 08-Oct-16 F 15 27: % 4 Gerhard Eckley ASA Interprovincial WPA 08-Oct-16 M 15 26: % 5 Akhona Ncacu ASA Interprovincial WPA 08-Oct-16 M 15 26: % 6 Vincent Nhlapo ASA Interprovincial AGN 08-Oct-16 M 15 26: % 7 Hilda Du Toit ASA Interprovincial BOL 08-Oct-16 F 16 27: % Note that I have attempted to only show the best performance here, several of the athletes have many performances that could make the grade m Track 1 Lebogang Shange Canberra, Aus RSA 11-Jan-16 M 26 00:41: % 10 km road 1 Cecily Rootenberg ASA Interprovincial 08-Oct-16 F 91 01:35: % 2 Annatjie Greyvenstein ASA Interprovincial AGN 08-Oct-16 F 71 01:02: % 3 Elsa Meyer WMA Perth 2016 Aus 31 Oct 16 F 70 01:02: % 4 Lebogang Shange Roma RSA 07 May 16 M 26 00:40: % 5 Hildegard Vey ASA Interprovincial WPA 08-Oct-16 F 75 01:11: % 6 Barbara Nell WMA Perth 2016 Aus 31 Oct 16 F 61 00:57: % 7 Winnie Koekemoer SA Athletics Champs PGNMA 14 May 16 F 65 01:03: % 8 Lesley van Buuren ASA Interprovincial 08-Oct-16 F 54 00:55: % 9 Von Benecke Lebeauf ASA Interprovincial 08-Oct-16 M 51 00:48: % 10 JURGEN SPENCER SA Athletics Champs PWP 14 May 16 M 76 01:04: % 11 Esme McIlvin ASA Interprovincial 08-Oct-16 F 77 01:18: % 12 Van Zyl Johan ASA Interprovincial WPA 08-Oct-16 M 67 00:58: % 13 Morgan Smith David ASA Interprovincial ASWD 08-Oct-16 M 79 01:09: % 14 Wendy Josephs ASA Interprovincial WPA 08-Oct-16 F 68 01:09: % 15 Carol-Ann Aver ASA Interprovincial WPA 08-Oct-16 F 71 01:13: % 16 Thumisang Phule ASA Interprovincial AGN 08-Oct-16 M 19 00:46: % 17 Ann Stead SA Athletics Champs PWPA 14 May 16 F 69 01:11: % 18 Margaret Norton ASA Interprovincial WPA 08-Oct-16 F 77 01:22: % 19 Retha Knoetze ASA Interprovincial AGN 08-Oct-16 F 61 01:04: % 20 Francois Jacobs ASA Interprovincial BOL 08-Oct-16 M 16 00:48: % 21 Bester Jan ASA Interprovincial AGN 08-Oct-16 M 57 00:54: % 22 Ray Patterson SA Athletics Champs PGNMA 14 May 16 M 63 00:58: % 23 Dierdre Macartney ASA Interprovincial 08-Oct-16 F 75 01:20: % 24 Avril Coats SA Athletics Champs PCGMA 14 May 16 F 59 01:03: % 25 Hanru Colling ASA Interprovincial BOL 08-Oct-16 M 17 00:48: % 26 Annetta Koen ASA Interprovincial ACNW 08-Oct-16 F 17 00:52: % 27 Elwich Van Wyk ASA Interprovincial ASWD 08-Oct-16 M 17 00:48: % 28 Gerard Van den Raad SA Athletics Champs PGNMA 14 May 16 M 72 01:05: % 29 Kiebet Strauss ASA Interprovincial AGN 08-Oct-16 F 73 01:18: % 30 Clements Fred ASA Interprovincial AGN 08-Oct-16 M 73 01:06: % 31 Meyer Carel ASA Interprovincial 08-Oct-16 M 59 00:57: % 32 Susan Smith SA Athletics Champs PKZN 14 May 16 F 60 01:05: % 33 Xolani Vusi Hlongwane ASA Interprovincial 08-Oct-16 M 18 00:48: % 34 Mhlongo Dumisani Sidwell ASA Interprovincial 08-Oct-16 M 73 01:07: % 35 Mary Schipper ASA Interprovincial WPA 08-Oct-16 F 70 01:16: % 36 Johannes Aubrey ASA Interprovincial 08-Oct-16 M 52 00:54: % 37 Rowe John ASA Interprovincial 08-Oct-16 M 80 01:15: % 38 Viviers Flip ASA Interprovincial AGN 08-Oct-16 M 77 01:12: % 39 Carol der Van der Walt ASA Interprovincial AGN 08-Oct-16 F 67 01:13: % 40 Celeste Scheepers ASA Interprovincial AGN 08-Oct-16 F 56 01:03: % 41 Kamahelo Polile ASA Interprovincial 08-Oct-16 M 18 00:49: % 42 Gail Williams ASA Interprovincial WPA 08-Oct-16 F 58 01:05: % 43 Lorraine Zehmke SA Athletics Champs PSWD 14 May 16 F 66 01:13: % 44 FRANS KOTZE Boland Champs Bol 10-Sep-16 M 65 01:03: % 45 Mary Jarvis ASA Interprovincial 08-Oct-16 F 71 01:19: % 46 Carol Van der Walt SA Athletics Champs PGNMA 14 May 16 F 66 01:13: % 47 Carol Rothero SA Athletics Champs PCGMA 14 May 16 F 59 01:07: % 48 Jaap Willemse WMA Perth 2016 Aus 31 Oct 16 M 60 01:00: % 49 Erdine Burger ASA Interprovincial WPA 08-Oct-16 F 59 01:07: % 50 Mariaan Serdyn ASA Interprovincial AGN 08-Oct-16 F 45 00:58: % 51 Oosthuizen Frans ASA Interprovincial AGN 08-Oct-16 M 54 00:57: % 52 Charlotte Kettlewell ASA Interprovincial WPA 08-Oct-16 F 68 01:16: % 53 Lucia Willemse WMA Perth 2016 Aus 31 Oct 16 F 61 01:09: % 54 Lauren Phillips SA Athletics Champs PCGMA 14 May 16 F 51 01:02: % 20000m Track 1 Lebogang Shange Stellenbosh AGN 18 Apr 16 M 26 01:23: % Issue 9 1 January 2017

2 20km Road 1 Elsa Meyer SA Walking Champs, YAGN Sat 08-Oct F 70 02:07: % 2 Lebogang Shange Adelaide AUS 21 Feb 16 M 26 01:20: % 3 Wayne Snyman ASA Senior Champion AGN 16 Apr 16 M 31 01:20: % 4 Peggy Reid SA Walking Champs, YWPA Sat 08-Oct F 79 02:37: % 5 Hildegard Vey WMA Perth 2016 Aus 04 Nov 16 F 75 02:33: % 6 Anel Oosthuizen Podébrady 09 Apr 16 F 21 01:34: % 7 Marc Mundell Adelaide AUS 21 Feb 16 M 26 01:27: % 8 Barbara Nell WMA Perth 2016 Aus 04 Nov 16 F 61 02:06: % 9 Sandra Steenkamp SA Walking Champs, YAGN Sat 08-Oct F 56 01:58: % 10 Sizwe Ndebele ASA Senior Champion AGN 16 Apr 16 M 22 01:28: % 11 Mthembi Chauque ASA Senior ChampionAFS 16 Apr 16 M 23 01:29: % 12 Jurgen Spencer ASA Interprovincial WPA Sat 08-Oct M 76 02:13: % 13 Loritha Jacobs SA Walking Champs, Y Sat 08-Oct F 64 02:17: % 14 Frieda Blignaut SA Athletics Champs PWPA 14 May 16 F 65 02:19: % 15 Corli Swart ASA Senior ChampionAGW 16 Apr 16 F 25 01:41: % 16 Zelda Schultz Dudinsk SVK 16 Apr 16 F 25 01:42: % 17 Aaron Mahlangu ASA Senior ChampionKZNA 16 Apr 16 M 25 01:34: % 18 Natalie Le Roux ASA Senior Champion KZNA 16 Apr 16 F 34 01:44: % 19 Mzwakhe Mavandla ASA Interprovincial Sat 08-Oct M 22 01:35: % 20 Lewis Molise ASA Senior Champion 16 Apr 16 M 28 01:36: % 21 Dave Kirby ASA Interprovincial WPA Sat 08-Oct M 81 02:39: % 22 Lucia Willemse ASA Interprovincial AGN Sat 08-Oct F 62 02:21: % 23 Kevin Phillips ASA Interprovincial Sat 08-Oct M 52 01:52: % 24 Gerard Van den Raad ASA Interprovincial AGN Sat 08-Oct M 72 02:16: % 25 Pam James ASA Interprovincial WPA Sat 08-Oct F 59 02:18: % 26 Christopher Callaghan SA Walking Champs, YAGN Sat 08-Oct M 63 02:06: % 27 Jaap Willemse SA Athletics Champs PGNMA 14 May 16 M 59 02:02: % 28 Lindokuhle Ntombela ASA Senior Champion KZNA 16 Apr 16 M 23 01:41: % 29 Chris Britz ASA Interprovincial AGN Sat 08-Oct M 52 01:57: % 30 Dannyboy Sehemo ASA Senior Champion 16 Apr 16 M 21 01:42: % 31 Mthunzi Mnisi ASA Senior ChampionAGN 16 Apr 16 M 28 01:41: % 30km Road 1 Yvonne Irmscher SA Walking Champs, YKZNA Sat 08-Oct F 54 03:21: % 2 Cheryl Everitt SA Walking Champs, Y Sat 08-Oct F 49 03:27: % 3 Babongile Memela SA Walking Champs, YKZNA Sat 08-Oct F 36 03:21: % 50km Road 1 Marc Mundell Melbourne RSA 13 Dec 15 M 31 03:54: % 2 Thembile Qhanqiso SA Walking Champs, YKZNA Sat 08-Oct M 49 04:49: % 3 Nhlanhla Khanyile SA Walking Champs, YKZNA Sat 08-Oct M 45 04:48: % 4 Mtunzi Mnisi SA Walking Champs, YAGN Sat 08-Oct M 28 04:33: % 5 Jeuffry Manamela SA Walking Champs, Y Sat 08-Oct M 27 05:13: % Walker of the month Kevin Phillips through getting friends and family to sponsor them per mile walked. Kevin was not the most popular child around after the walk since nobody ever expected the six-year old to walk the entire 15 miles (24km). Unfortunately, that is where Kevin s auspicious career as a race walker stopped until about 2002 when he joined a group at a nearby Health and Racquet gym and started walking again. Most of Kevin s schooling was at Bryanston Primary School and then Bryanston High School. Walking was not a recognized athletics discipline at these schools and he was not particularly interested in the other disciplines on offer. Kevin s mother was a tennis coach and national level squash player so he ended up playing tennis and then later on at high school, squash. He continued with squash at a reasonably high league level until injuries persuaded him it was time to give up in In 1998 and 1999, Kevin ended up doing three races as a walker (for a reason he no longer remembers) and didn t do too badly as a purely recreational walker, but he was nowhere near a podium finish. In 2000 they moved to Melbourne, Australia for 8 months to open a branch of the company that Kevin worked for at the time. For no good reason, he became a couch potato and hardly exercised at all Back to South Africa later in the year with a number of extra unwanted kilograms he was prompted to get going with squash again and during 2001 he was at his best at the game until he snapped an Achilles tendon on the court during a league match. Much rehabilitation and physiotherapy ensued but the recovery process was slow. What Kevin found really helped recovery was plain simple walking. In 2002 Kevin s wife, Lauren, persuaded him to join a group of walkers she had been walking with for a while at, what was then, the Health and Racquet Club in Morningside. He had got back into squash and was not particularly serious about the walking but enjoyed going out with the group most Saturdays. This though did start to get him a little competitive and since he was relatively fit from squash, he did a few races in In 2003, the more serious walkers in the group realised they had hit a plateau and although they put in plenty of effort they were not getting any faster. Kevin did his first 702 Walk-the-Talk 21.1km that year and ended up walking with Hildegard Vey who is a few years older than him. At about 17 or 18km, this old lady left Kevin in the dust and she loved every minute of it! Kevin with some Health and racquet walkers (including Janet Goodman and Baboo Lall) If you are wondering why there is a picture of Kevin on a bicycle when this is supposed to be article about walking, please do read the blurb and you ll understand better. Kevin won the bicycle not because he walked the fastest or furthest but rather because the girl in the photo and Kevin ended up raising the most money Janet Goodman was part of their walking group and, at a race one day, met up with Baboo Lall, a race walker from Lenasia. Those of you who know Janet know how friendly and sociable she is and so Issue 9 2 January 2017

3 before long she had persuaded Baboo to come across to the northern side of Johannesburg to do some coaching. Kevin had seen the good walkers at the races and was trying to emulate what they did. Only when Baboo started coaching them did he realize how little he really knew and how much he had to learn to get there! Kevin about to be overtaken by 73 y old John Hotston Kevin, Barbara was a legend just to be spoken about and now she was his coach! During 2004 and 2005 he trained well and did a number of races. In 2004 Kevin finished 1st veteran in the 702 Walk-the-Talk and by 2005 he improved enough to be selected for the team to go to Oudtshoorn in July Although Kevin was placed last in his age category in the 20km he was pleased to break the 2 hour barrier in a 20km race. Kevin had continued to play squash and ended up with a hip problem that kept at him on and off until Even with that, he managed to get into the team again in 2006 and managed to get a Silver medal in a faster time than the year before! SA Champs Oudsthoorn In January 2004, Kevin was sent to work on a project in Cape Town for 3 months. Baboo put him in touch with John Hotston who was walking for and coaching at Spartan Harriers. John managed to get Kevin to look like a real race walker from a technique perspective. He then had to put a whole lot of work into not just looking like a real race walker but actually being one. John persuaded Kevin to join a club and Masters Athletics and to enter the 5000m walk at the WP Masters Championships. (He joined RAC and met Brenda Wakfer who was the walking captain at the time.) At the WP champs in Cape Town Kevin was 39 and John was 73 at the time. Nevertheless, John still beat Kevin on the race! At those championships Kevin was lucky enough to watch a world record being set. Philip Rabinowitz had just turned 100 and he walked the 5000m in a time of 47:59.2! We all know many people much younger than ourselves who can t do this what an inspiration! Philip Rabinowitz walking towards his world Record During 2006, Brenda Wakfer managed to get the Race Walking committee started again and Kevin was secretary until he resigned in Thanks to the efforts of the committee, race walking in Central Gauteng started to take off again. The committee has since became a Commission and has gone from strength to strength. At the end of 2006 Kevin s hip was giving a lot of trouble and in 2007 he had an arthroscopy on his hip and a Sports hernia (athletic pubalgia) operation at the same time. Only later in 2007 did he start to enter races again. Being a typical athlete by now, Kevin dived straight back in, overdid things and injured himself again. He then backed off too much for a number of years and his walking did not improve much, if at all. Once his Cape Town project was over and he was permanently back in Johannesburg, Janet Goodman mentioned that Barbara Nell and Gail de Szabo had just started coaching at Wanderers. To 2008 to 2012 were not great years for races except for a couple of highlights. In 2008 Kevin did the course to become a race walk judge. In 2009 he did his first 32km at the Cape Town Big Walk and took 2nd place after overtaking someone 400m before the finish. His main highlight during these years though was the 10km Road Walk at the SAMA championships in Cape Town in This was the first official 10km race walk for masters men under 60 and as such, he should have set the SA record for his age category. Unfortunately, Kevin had no idea that there was a process to follow with paperwork and so he never did get that record ratified. Kevin Issue 9 3 January 2017

4 also did his first 94.7 Cycle Challenge which he managed to finish in a respectable time on a Mountain bike. In January 2009 Kevin changed club membership from RAC to the Wanderers Athletics Club. In 2010 or 2011 he started helping out at Run Walk for Life in Sunninghill looking after the Quality sessions. SA Interprovincial, Cape Town 2016 Sometime during 2012 Kevin decided that he better wake up and start doing some proper training! Soon after starting with Barbara Nell as his coach, Kevin met up with Lesley van Buuren and she joined Barbara as well. Lesley is a brilliant athlete and they decided to start training together. This was a turning point for Kevin and in 2013 he managed Personal Best times in every distance that he raced from the 5000m up to the 20km and even a half-marathon! These times also earned Kevin his SAMA colours. Another major milestone for him was the first time he was actually faster than Lesley in a race! Back home after the race he was quick to tell Lauren how pleased he was about this. The immediate response was I m delighted for you. Lesley is female and she s older than you! there is nobody like your wife to put you in your place in a hurry. Later on in 2013, Lesley and Kevin decided that they wanted to walk the Two Oceans 56km ultra-marathon in 2014 and so training for that started in earnest after the SA champs in Youngsfield in October. The relatively easy Kaapschehoop marathon was his first marathon and his qualifier for the Two Oceans. Sadly at the end of 2013, Barbara and Gail decided that they would no longer be doing any coaching. After the 2 Oceans with Lesley 2014 was the year in which Kevin completed the most races. This included the Two Oceans which both he and Lesley managed to complete within the cutoff time. In 2014 Kevin was awarded his SA Colours for the age category. During 2015 Kevin managed to maintain his training and requalified for SA Colours in the age category and made a PB in the 5000m at the SAMA champs in Port Elizabeth. At the end of 2015, Lesley and Kevin decided that they needed a coach and approached Chris Britz. Chris agreed to help them and they started training with his program. With Barbara no longer coaching at Wanderers, Kevin changed clubs to Run Walk for Life Sunninghill in January His plan was to enter the WMA championships in Perth. Fairly early in 2016 his knee started to intermittently give problems and some of his race times slowed dramatically. Although he managed a PB in the 1500m at Germiston in the CGMA championships his 20km at the SAMA champs in Pilditch was the slowest he had raced in a number of years. As a result Kevin decided not to compete in Perth. Kevin did end up doing more cycling and managed a PB at the 94.7! Kevin plans to enter the WMA champs in Spain in 2018 and so he intends to take it reasonably easy but still try to keep within the national colours standards at the relevant races during though will need to be a year of hard training if he wants to do well enough at the WMA champs. Kevin points out that as with anything we do; such as winning a race, getting a PB or getting a degree; success doesn t just happen without work. For any program, be it physical or anything else, a good coach/teacher/mentor and a good training program makes all the difference. A good coach will always help you out with the best training program for your needs and capability. If you re very fortunate, as Kevin was with Barbara, you ll see your coach once a week. Most of us don t have that. Kevin found that having a consistent training partner at a similar level to him helped hugely. He feels that if it wasn t for Lesley training with him, getting him out there when he d far rather be comfortably sitting on a couch somewhere, chasing him up the hills and just being as uncomfortable with the training program as he was at times, he would not be anywhere near where he is now. Kevin s training programs are from a book by Bobby McGee called Run Workouts for Runners and Triathletes. The specific race he is training for at the time will determine the program he uses. People often ask him how far he walks during the week when he is training. He often has no idea; he just sticks to the program. Kevin will sometimes check after and surprise himself when he sees that he has done 70km in the last week. Kevin advises that we should walk to enjoy it. If you re not enjoying it, don t do it, find something you do enjoy. Don t train through the pain of an injury the pain is usually there to tell you something is wrong and you must fix it before you break it more. (Words meant for the editor perhaps? Ed) Having been part of the race walking fraternity for the number of years that I have, I ve always been amazed at the generosity and willingness of fellow walkers to help each other. Of all the people who have coached me, not one of them has ever asked me for a cent for themselves. Thank you to all of you. If your name isn t mentioned here and you think it should be, I am sorry. Thank you especially to Lauren who has to put up with me and my walking. Her 2017 New Year s resolution and now mantra is Don t kill the husband. The way to get started is to quit talking and begin walking. Apologies to Walt Disney ( ) for replacing doing with walking in his quote. Source: Kevin Phillips, edited by Chrisc Issue 9 4 January 2017

5 News Queen s Athletes Over the years I have been helping our disadvantaged athletes by giving them shoes and vests and an athletic club to belong to. Vreni Welch of RAC has always helped me and supported me in this. I collected second hand shoes and training kit and slowly but surely athletes started to emerge and started winning at races. I pleaded with my provincial body, Central Gauteng Athletics to assist and they have been giving our Race Walking Commission a monthly allowance to help these athletes. As this grew the athletes got better until it was not unusual to see Youth and Juniors standing in all three places on the podium at SA Champs. Then I saw Lebogang Shange at a race, who was an orphan and he came to live with me and my late husband Bob. We were fortunate enough to get a sponsor for Lebo, who still supports him today, and Lebo went to the Olympics last year. The first four race walkers at Queens High School, Vusi Hlongwano, Kgosi Ngake. Palesa Msheba and Dimakatso Msheba Masters - league meetings & remaining fixtures for season Masters athletes are invited to participate in the local league. All athletes must enter through the office All masters athletes are welcome to participate at the AGN and leagues. Please come along to the league meetings on 14 January from 08h30 and 21 January from 1 pm and look out for us at the Central Gauteng Masters Gazebo/banner on the grass embankment near the finish line. If you are unable to compete, please come to meet with other masters athletes and to welcome our new members and bring a friend who may be interested (CGMA calendar and full day programme attached). We wish all our members a Blessed Christmas and a Healthy and injury free 2017! Date: Event Venue Entries 14-Jan League Germiston (tbc) Entries at the gate (Full day programme) 08h30 21-Jan League Germiston (tbc) Entries at the gate (Programme 1) 13h00 28-Jan League Germiston (tbc) Entries at the gate (Programme 1) 13h00 11-Feb League Germiston (tbc) Entries at the gate (Programme 2) 13h00 25-Feb League Germiston (tbc) Entries at the gate WP Masters *16 & 17 Championships March 2016 *16 & 17 (tbc) March KZN Masters 2016 Championships (Programme 2) 13h00 Green Point Stadium, Cape Town Durban (tbc) Pre-entry (entry forms on request) Pre-entry (entry forms on request) We felt the need for more than just coaching in athletics for these kids, as we now have 45 race walkers at our monthly training sessions. In November, the Race Walking Development Trust was formed. I was given a contact at Queens High School and after many meetings with the principal Mr Lourens and Coach Thandi at the school, we reached an agreement. Our first four athletes started at Queens High School on Wednesday 11th January They are in residence so now have structure to their lives in that they have their homework supervised, have three good meals a day, a bed to sleep in (some sleep on the floor at home) and Thabiso Tsagane to coach them. There are five worthy athletes waiting to start at Queens, but we need more funds. I feel we have done so well having only started in November to have our first kids in school. If anyone is interested in helping these kids, as we have no big corporate behind us, funds have come mainly from fellow race walkers, please contact me for banking details. Thank you for reading my story, as it is what we are passionate about, Race Walking, and we need to keep our race walkers on the international stage and at the Olympics in It is possible; we just need to look at Lebogang Shange. Source: Brenda Wakfer 01-Apr-17 AGN Masters Championships Pilditch, Pretoria Pre-entry (tbc) 08-Apr-17 CGMA Masters Championships Germiston Pre-entry (tbc) 4-6 May 2017 *The WP and KZN masters champs are held in conjunction with their senior championships. Source: Pam Immelman Upcoming events Due to logistical problems, the first Grand Prix will not take place on 14 January 2017 but on 21 January S.A. Masters Championships GREEN POINT, CAPE TOWN Western Cape News Leo Benning 3 at Parow stadium Grand Prix at Youngsfield 17/18. March 2017 WP Champs 4/5/6. May 2017 SAMA Champs. Pre-entry (tbc) Issue 9 5 January 2017

6 Jurgen s Column Our province WP is the only one where for the past few years membership of Masters was automatic (inclusive in license fee) for all over 30 years of age. This is to be changed as of 2017, where Masters are asked to pay an annual membership of R 100. Anyone age 30+ who enjoys sport, be it T&F athletics which includes track and road racewalking events, and believes that being a member of the Masters Body is a waste of time should seriously think again. Just look at the WPA Masters web side and count the 101 benefits for Masters Members. SAMA membership is R this allows you to participate in other provincial Championships, South African Masters Championships and biannual World Masters Championships, like the recent one held in Perth Australia. If you are not a Masters Member, you might as well remove your age category tags and compete in the open class. As a club member and license holder you may compete in the WPA Championships, you may enter in the five Leo Benning events, but not as an age categorized Master Athlete. The next SA Masters Championships to be held at Greenpoint Stadium are also not available to you unless you have a Masters Membership. Good Advice Why is straight line walking important? What are the benefits if you do it right? What are the draw backs if you don t? In general it can be said that walkers with good forward hip rotation have less problem maintaining good straight line walking ability. Good hip rotation promotes most effective straight line walking and straight foot placement after heel contact. The shortest distance between A = toe off and B = other foot heel plant, is a straight line. If foot placement is angled to the right (right foot) and to the left (left foot) your line of forward direction is measured step by step in zigzag mode, which is not economical and rather inefficient. You could give away a couple of centimetres with every step you take. Good straight line walking retains energy by preventing lateral hip and body movement. The aim is to reduce any sway. As fatigue sets in not only during racing but also in longer distance training, a walker s efficiency, the quality of correct and perfect technique application diminishes. The degree of variation from the norm is directly related to the level of overall strength, power and general level of fitness. Try to perform a perfect technique drill of straight line walking after a long hard walk and see how you shape up. Include the drill in every warm up. Walk along a straight line, use lane dividers on a track. If traffic allows it, use yellow lines on roads. Focus on your hips, reaching forward as the advancing leg swings forward. Ensure your foot placement is straight, not angled. Foot placement depends largely on your body s mechanics and is often a long term task to get right, and sometimes impossible to correct completely. Lekker Stap! only women did the10 km road, and only men the 20 km. No chance for 3 medals, as our Ladies achieved in Perth Australia. Number of competitors women 5000m = 141 Number of competitors women 10 km = 181 Number of competitors men 5000m = 186 Number of competitors men 20km = 191 Disqualifications on track, Women = 23 Disqualifications on track, Men = 56 Our RSA top performers as follows: - Ladies. (35 and older. Anna Villet (70) 2 Gold, times 33:55 and 1:08:18 Helena Rothman (65) 2 Gold, times 30:03 and 1:00:54 Barbara Nel (42) 1 Gold, 1 Silver, times 24:19 and 50:30 Linsey Hatz (58) 1 Gold, 1 Silver, times 30:48 and 1:02:12 Karen Davis (41) 1 Gold, time 48:51 Hester v.d. Berg (45) 2 Silver, times 26:26 and 53:12 Michelle du Toit (37) 1 Silver, 1 Bronze, times, 28:58 and 59:49 Theresa Mackintosh (39) 1 Silver, time 59:26 Dorothy Castle (78) 1 Silver, time 1:16:27 Eunice de Bruyn (60) 1 Bronze, times 33:29 and 1:03:42 Marietjie Landman (67) 1 DQ, 1 Bronze, time 1:11:25 Men.(40 and older (No category). Phillip Rabinowitz (93) 2 Gold, times 45:27 and 3:02:21 Mike Whitmore (45) 2 Gold, times 23:24 and 1:41:30 Jürgen Spencer (57) 2 Gold, times 23:52 and 1:45:16 George Hazle (72) 1 Gold, 1 Silver, times 30:30 and 2:15:25 Ben Moodie (87) 1DQ, 1 Gold, time 2:51:48 Oliver Mundell (43) 1 Silver, times, 23:14 and 1:42:11 George Caniotes (79) 1 Silver, times 37:02 and 2:38:13 Colin van Blommenstein (45) 1 Bronze, times, 24:37 and 1:45:00 John Hotston (66) 1 DQ, 1 Bronze, time 2:06:45 Gielie Roussouw (60) 1 DQ, 1 Bronze, time 2:06:06 I remember them all, especially those who are no longer with us. I am sure they are allowed to continue Racewalking in Heaven. Maybe they are looking down on us still enjoying our sport. International news Source: Jürgen Spencer (edited) E.A.A. European Race Walking Coaching Conference Masters News Source: Jürgen Spencer (edited) SAMA championships 2017 will be hosted by WP Masters at the Green Point Stadium in Cape Town, on the 4th, 5th and 6th May Down Memory Lane Jurgen spencer had a trip down memory lane after the wonderful performances by our lady racewalkers at Perth this year! The first World Masters to be held on our continent (the 12th World Championships) was in Durban on the 17th to 27th July I wish to share with you some of the highlights: Over athletes competed from 78 Nations. A total of 60 World Records were broken. Women and Men walked 5000m track races, The event of Race Walking is experiencing a rebirth in the U.K. due largely to the efforts of the team at the national race walking performance centre in Leeds and the support that has been put in place for athletes and coaches. Coaches and athletes from around the world are also tapping in to the innovative research that is going on at the centre. Issue 9 6 January 2017

7 If you were to have a tick list of what a successful coach should have in their armoury, then you would be drawn to a person who had a clear philosophy and beliefs and a high moral stance. Whose coaching was athlete centred and holistic. You would be looking for a person who had an ongoing thirst for learning and knowledge. They would be confident and have a positive approach to solving problems they would be very thorough in planning for the future. They would also be an optimist and have a balanced work/life relationship, and would recognise that this balance was equally important to the athlete. The coach would have vision and a goal and would know how to plan to fulfil that vision. The coach would be a good communicator and build a team of people that would work towards the common goal. They would be able make everyone within the team feel valued. They would have the ability to simplify what was complex, to build a challenging but stable training environment and have high expectations. They should be highly conscientious and expect the same high standards of others and be able to nurture a culture of success. They should be able to manage the athlete s entourage (friends, family etc.,) to ensure they are all working to the same end. They would also be adaptable and always reviewing and adjusting and leaving no stone unturned in their quest for achievement at the highest level. IAAF WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS 2017 London, GBR List of Qualifying Race Walk Competitions in 2017 As at 2 December 2016 IAAF AND AREA LEVEL COMPETITIONS Results achieved in Race Walk events staged at all the following Competitions are valid towards the Entry Standards IAAF World Athletics Series Area, Regional or Group Games Regional or Group Championships in Athletics Matches between teams from different Areas representing Members or Areas or combinations thereof IAAF World Race Waking Challenge Area Championships and other intra-area competitions organised by an Area Association Regional or Group Championships in Athletics Area Permit Competitions NATIONAL PERMIT COMPETITIONS Only results achieved at the following National Race Walk Competitions are valid towards the Entry Standards Spanish Race Walking Championships Valverde (El Hierro) ESP 04-Mar Men: 50km - Women: 20km French Race Walking Championships La Roche-Sur-Yon FRA 12-Mar Men: 50km / 20km - Women: 20km Lugano Trophy Lugano SUI 19-Mar Men: 20km - Women: 20km German National Race Walking Championships Naumburg GER 23-Apr Men: 20km / 50km - Women: 20km Masters Championships Masters Indoor Champs Daegu, Korea March 2017 Masters African Champs Abidjan, Ivory coast August 2017 Racewalk Commissions AGN: Chris Britz (Chairman), Gabriel Makola (Vice Chairman) Marius Bosman: (Treasurer) Jaap Willemse: (Events) Lucia Willemse (Secretary) Mzwakhe Kobue: (Race Walking Development) WPA: Wynand Beukes (Chairman), Stefano Aracena (Vice-chairman), Roy Whyte, Fundiswa Sandi, Kobus Nel and Charlotte Kettlewell. : Brenda Wakfer (Chairman) Lesley van Buuren (Secretary) Sheldon George (Finance) Bernard Donnelly (Technical Officials) Thabiso Tsagane (Coach) Rose Shabalala (Ass Secretary) AFS, AGW, AM, ASWD, AVT, Boland, Border, AKZN. Editorial Another year passes for some it was a good year we think of the great performances of our World record holders Elsa and Hildegard, as well as the excellent contributions of our other WMA participants and the brilliant performances of our Olympic four who are, step by step, rewriting the South African record books. I still expect to see plenty of exciting contributions from them in the next few years. I am also hopeful that this sudden growth in walking in South Africa is not just a flash in the pan and that we will see more excellent young walkers on the road in the years to come perhaps we can have five in Japan? For me 2016 was a complex year. I never managed to peak quite right so I was at my best AFTER the Masters Athletics Champs in Pretoria (managing to walk my second colours qualifier at the opening of the Tuks track), and BEFORE the SA Racewalking interprovincial in Cape Town. Unfortunately the ankle injury picked up in Cape Town and exacerbated at the King Price race in Irene has stayed with me and I am not sure that I will be able to get back to those levels in the short term has many challenges for me mainly outside of the arena of Racewalking. However I hope to keep contact and perhaps learn to be a little more sociable! Remember that the website for back issues is and please contribute to the facebook page (South African racewalkers). Make this YOUR newsletter rather than mine be a part of the fabric of South African Racewalking. NOTE: I am but human, I make mistakes. If anything here is incorrect don t tell your friends and family tell me! In that way I can correct it and the correct figures will appear in future. Contact me Chris Callaghan: Chrisc37@gmail.com Love Running: Sport for the Glory of God "To walk is to live, to walk fast is to live well." If you want to receive this newsletter in your inbox, you need to me and ask! Issue 9 7 January 2017