Modern Athlete Magazine Issue 116, March 2019 | Page 24

“This journey has been great and I have met many
inspiring people through it – and some of them are
also very good runners. I have had quite a few good
moments at races during the years, but a standout
one has to be the 27 For Freedom 10km race in 2017.
I didn’t have the best of races on the day, but I got
to sprint the final 200m next to Candyce, who was
finishing the 27km race, and that was a lot of fun.”
PUSHING HIS LIMITS
Juan says his immediate goal is to keep pushing the
limits and break through any barriers along the way.
“Running PBs is my goal every weekend. How else
will I know if my training is working if I don’t go faster?
So I am really looking forward to every race in 2019. I
feel so blessed every time I get to line up at the start,
but no two days are the same for me. Training can go
well and then race day can be anything but perfect.”
take a bit of a hiatus from 2002 to 2012, when he was
based in London, but he picked it up again when he
came home for a two-month holiday each year, and
managed the occasional 10km race in London.
That all changed when he moved back to South Africa
in 2013 and threw himself into running, and in just
six years he has racked up a most impressive list of
racing achievements. “I have run 249 10km races, 64
15km races, 93 half marathons, one marathon and
two 50km races, with a fair amount of other distances
thrown in for good measure,” he proudly recounts. “I
would like to add a 30km race sometime in the near
future, because I’ve done almost every other distance
up to 50km.”
INSPIRATIONAL WORDS
Running is not Juan’s only sporting activity. He finished
three Sanlam Cycle Tours between 2002 and 2005, but
he found that cycling clashed with his running time, so
he decided to stop riding. He is also a tennis player,
but doesn’t do that as much anymore... also because it
clashed with his training days for running. “I love being
active and I love sport. I try and watch as much of it as
I can when I am not competing myself. Of all the codes,
cricket, rugby and athletics are my favourites. But I love
my running. The only other things I love as much as
running would be autograph collecting, photography
and being out in nature.”
“I always say, you should learn and know your limits,
but do not be limited by them. If you want advice
on running as a newbie runner, then do not search
for it on social media. There are too many experts
telling you how to do things, without knowing you
personally and without knowing your situation. If you
want to run a 10km then go and do it. If you want to
run a half marathon, go and do it, because you can
only learn from experience. But you have to respect
the distance. I’ve had races where my mind is doing
six minutes per kilometre, but my body is doing nine
minutes per kay. Those ones are tougher to deal with
than the rest, but you just keep moving.”
Juan is a member of the Carbineers Club in the
Western Province, and says he chose the club in 2017
thanks to a chance meeting on the road with Candyce
Hall, co-ordinator of the club. “As I was finishing the
Weskus Half, Candyce came jogging past me on her
cool-down run and said that I ran well. That moment
and those words changed everything. I got in touch
with her and joined the Carbineers, and have followed
her training programme since then. My willpower
and strong mind combined with a quality and well-
structured plan has helped me achieve amazing
results. Also, the Carbs have become my running
family, with their loud cheers and the support they
give me on race day.”
Looking further ahead, Juan says his long-term goal
is to make the cut-off in half marathons when he is 80
years old, and he says he feeds off the inspiration of
the people around him in the running community. “I
am inspired by many people, and I look up to those
who don’t have an easy life, but still get up every
morning and make others smile, those who do things
for others without expecting anything in return. There
are quite a few runners that inspire me every day to be
better than I was yesterday. They do their thing quietly
and without much fanfare, but their example is what
I admire and try to incorporate into my own life and
running journey.”
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ISSUE 116 MARCH 2019 / www.modernathlete.co.za