Modern Athlete Magazine Issue 112, November 2018 | Page 13

ROAD RUNNING to take on the world’s best at the World Cross Country Champs and the World Half Marathon Champs, and it was here where he forged the steel required to race with the big guns of world marathon running. Twice Hendrick finished runner-up to the legendary Paul Tergat of Kenya at the World Half Marathon Championships (1998, 1999), and in both cases he led South Africa to the team gold medal. And now it is here, at Zoo Lake, that Hendrick is hoping to prepare the next generation of athletes to represent South Africa on the global stage. “This is the ideal place to train. I learnt a lot here in my career, and it is time to now take that knowledge and share it with anyone who wants to run,” says Hendrick. THE NEXT GENERATION In 2015, Hendrick Ramaala and Nick Bester decided to team up and try help South Africa’s Marathon hopefuls for the Rio Olympics, and a squad of around 10 athletes was assembled to train together and prepare to try qualify. From there came a longer-term dream. “Why not become a middle distance and long distance training centre and help grow South African road running and middle distance running? We have so much talent in South Africa. I want to help find this talent and develop and grow it. We should be challenging for world medals, but somewhere we lost our way. I hope to build a centre around Zoo Lake, where we train and nurture and grow runners who can make an impact on the world.” By “build a centre,” Hendrick is not referring to physically erecting buildings to house athletes at “if you have stayed and watched in awe, you will have witnessed the next generation of racing machines in South Africa” Zoo Lake, but rather to build the capabilities of the runners. Of course he would like to have facilities where they can live, but it is mainly about the training as a group, targeting and preparing for races with a focus on the international circuit. “That is where it happens, where the money is, and where the best in the world race. And if we want to be up there with the best, we need to race against them.” TOUGH TRAINING REGIME From the original training group that he started with in 2015 – and not all in group were training for the marathon – only Precious and Desmond are still with him, with the others choosing to go their own way, but Hendrick is philosophical about that. “You cannot force athletes. They must want to. I will train anyone who is willing, keen and hungry. But I train hard, so if you come train with me, you need to understand that. And that training is not for everyone.” Both Precious and Desmond have benefited from Hendrick’s training and hard work ethic, and over a three-year period of training under him, Desmond has improved from a 2:15 marathoner to a sub-2:10 runner. At 29 years of age, he is just hitting his stride in the marathon, and that 2:09 he ran in Japan in February is a breakthrough for him, as it means he will now be of interest to international marathons with his Post-run stretching at Zoo Lake IAAF Silver Label status. “That is what we need to be working towards and looking at,” says Ramaala. “It takes time, but the journey is worth it. Desmond has broken 2:10, a big psychological barrier, so from here it will be easier to get to 2:08 or better.” Unsurprisingly, the athletes have been asked whether running repeats of the same loop becomes boring, but Desmond says it has actually made him a better runner, and mentally stronger. “Training here on the same circuit day in and day out teaches you to focus. It was hard in the beginning, but I have learned not to be distracted by anything and that has helped in my racing.” REACHING FOR THE STARS After training, the group gathers to do some stretching and strength work before going to rest. And tomorrow they will be back, running around Zoo Lake, repeating the process, until the next race and the next step to becoming world class athletes. Hendrick hopes that the success his stars have already achieved will attract still more talented runners to Zoo Lake, and hopefully in the years to come, this will lay the foundation of a group of athletes who can hold their own with the Kenyans, Ugandans and Ethiopians on the world stage. The opportunities are there, the athletes just need to take them. Hendrick and his charges at the Sanlam Cape Town Marathon, Precious Mashele, Desmond Mokgobu and Maxime Chaumeton Online Entries | Race Office | Race Marketing | Live Timing and Results www.peaktiming.co.za | [email protected] | Grant 082 468 0195 SELECTED UPCOMING EVENTS: 4 th Nov 2018 9 th Dec 2018 13 th Jan 2019 RACE MANAGEMENT FROM START TO FINISH 27 th Jan 2019 3 rd Mar 2019 13