Modern Athlete Magazine Issue 118, May 2019

ADVERTORIAL Murray & Roberts Athletes Excel, Vorentoe Continues to Set the Pace The period from late March to late April was a great month for the Murray & Roberts team, especially in the middle distances at both the South African Under-18 and Under-20 Track & Field Championships and South African Senior Track & Field Championships, while the scholars in the club from Vorentoe High School cleaned up at the National Schools Championships. Philani Buthelezi continues to go from strength to strength. The 29-year-old recently switched to Lindsey Parry as his coach and the results are starting to show. Better known as a 10km and half marathon athlete, Philani has recorded some solid times on the track this year, improving his 1500m PB on two occasions and lowering his 10,000m PB from 30:12.15 to 29:17.22. In a dominant display of front running at the SA Senior Champs, he won the national 10,000m title on 25 April, with a winning time of 29:21.71. Two days later he lined up in the 5000m and had to settle for the silver medal, but he still managed to post the second-best time of his career, 14:06.67. That is 12 seconds off his PB, but the fastest he has run for the 5000m since 2015. Also at the Senior Champs, Tumisang Monnatlala claimed the silver medal in the men’s 3000m steeplechase, and Kesa Molotsane, in her first race back in SA after representing the country at the World Cross Country Championships on 30 March in Aarhus, Denmark, earned a bronze medal in the women’s 5000m. Building the Next Generation Vorentoe High School has long stood out for its exceptional ability to find and nurture athletics talent, but also looks to help talented young athletes invest in their futures by providing them with a stable education. This is done through bursaries, now sponsored by Murray & Roberts, which allows them to focus on both athletic and academic pursuits. The rewards for this hard work were once again clear to see as Vorentoe raked in a serious number of medals during this period. At the SA Schools Championships in Port Elizabeth from 21 to 23 March, Vorries bagged five gold, five silver and four bronze medals, for a total of 14 medals. Equally impressive was the performance at the SA U18 & U20 Championships in Paarl from 28 to 30 March. Having sent 18 athletes to the Champs, Vorentoe athletes came home with three national titles and six medals. This could have been Lethabo Makgoga 20 ISSUE 118 MAY 2019 / www.modernathlete.co.za more, had Nico Seopposengwe and Tumi Lephoto not been called up for international duty at the World Cross Country Championships in Denmark. As it is, Tshepo Ntuntwana won the Boys’ U18 2000m steeplechase title, Lethabo Makgoga the women’s U20 3000m steeplechase, and Frans Matlala took the U20 men’s 400m race. Frans was also selected to go to the Ivory Coast to represent South Africa at the CAA Africa Youth and Junior Championships in early April. Another Murray & Roberts club athlete, Casey Bosman from Benoni High School, continued to showcase her immense talent and versatility by claiming silver in the 3000m and bronze in the 3000m steeplechase in the women’s U20 age category. Also, Dipuo Mashamaite claimed the Women’s U20 5000m. Molotsane Finding Form at Spar The tough course in the World Cross Country Championships in Denmark took its toll on most competing athletes, including SA’s Kesa Molotsane. This was obvious to anybody watching her in the 5000m at the SA Senior Champs, where she still managed a third place finish to claim the bronze medal. However, she soon bounced back in style, at the first Spar Grand Prix Race in Port Elizabeth on 4 May. In what was one of the fastest 10km races for women seen in South Africa for a long time, Kesa finished third in 33:09, the second-best time of her career and a clear sign that she is finding her form again. Middle Distance Medallists at Senior Champs

Modern Athlete Magazine Issue 118, May 2019 | Page 20