Modern Athlete Magazine Issue 123, October 2019 | Page 17

ADVERTORIAL
Reaping the Success
The Murray & Roberts Running Club has now been in existence for nearly a year, but has made a huge and
lasting impact on the athletic scene in South Africa. There have been multiple national champions, more than 100 race
victories, national representation, Comrades and Two Oceans gold medals, and more. Modern Athlete caught up with
club chairman Ed Jardim, to find out what the club’s recipe for success is.
MA: Ed, why do
you think the club
has made such an
immediate impact?
EJ: There are many
factors, but one of the
most important is that
we have a company that
is caring, committed
and driven to provide
engineered excellence
for the athletes.
Secondly, our manager, Dana Coetzee, and his very able
team of René Kalmer, Arnold Geerdts and Anastacia
Nel, are all passionate about ensuring that the athletes
only have to worry about one thing: Performing on the
day. He and his squad take care of all the small things –
and the big ones – to ensure that the runners have their
minds on producing their best form at the right time. So
the company’s ideals and the team’s values run parallel,
and thus the results have been so fantastic. In fact,
every weekend’s performances are amazing!
MA: Why did Murray & Roberts decide to take
over the club at a time when sponsorship is
declining in SA?
EJ: It just made sense from the moment that we first
sat down to discuss it. Our Group Chief Executive,
Henry Laas, immediately had an appetite for it, and
said, “We are proud and excited to be a part of SA
athletics and look forward to the achievements of not
only the elite level athletes, but also the development
squad from the Vorentoe Running Academy, which
is home to incredible talent that we will be nurturing
and developing.” In fact, that was the clincher for
us, that we would also be able to directly influence,
engineer and shape the future of young athletes,
to ensure that our country’s abundant talent is fully
realised. What was heart-warming for us at Murray &
Roberts Running Club, was that our ownership of the
club was recently used as a case study at the Dubai
International Sport Conference, as a company that
took a chance on keeping an athletics team’s dreams
alive. Well, the risk has paid off handsomely, hasn’t it?
MA: What do you see in the future for the club?
EJ: Our endeavours are aimed at providing a
complete spectrum and platform for athletes to
compete in and on. From the juniors at Vorentoe,
who have again delighted with their 19th consecutive
win at the provincial cross country championships
(Directors Trophy – North Vaal Region), to the elites
on the track, road and trails, to the age group winners
that we field on a weekly basis in races right around
the country. We are of the opinion that it is vitally
important for us to be a South African club for South
African runners. Indeed, we are proudly local, and will
only invest in our own home-grown talent. It’s non-
negotiable that we continue to support our own!
Star Focus:
Benedict
Moeng
World Athletic
Championship
Marathon
Contender
M
urray & Roberts’ first ever representative
at the IAAF World Athletic
Championship, Benedict Moeng, lines
up in the marathon in Doha this month. ‘Benny’
is a seasoned athlete with an impressive range
and he gets another shot at the big time with his
second appearance at the world showpiece in the
green and gold of Team SA. He also donned the
national colours in Beijing in 2015 at the World
Champs. The 34-year-old has a half marathon
best of 62:23 and a marathon best of 2:10:21,
which he ran in Xiamen in 2014.
As a tune-up for Doha, he charged to a 64-minute
clocking at the PetroSA Half Marathon in Mossel
Bay a few weeks earlier, indicating that he
was ready to produce a good run at the global
showpiece. “I’m ready to perform well for my club
and my country,” said the two-time SA Marathon
Champion on departure for Doha.
Benny was recently a guest speaker at the
Bekker Skool in Magalies, where he urged the
grade 8’s and 9’s to work hard to achieve their
dreams. And as he chases his own dreams and
takes on the best in the world, our prayers and
thoughts are with him.
Dana Coetzee
René Kalmer
Arnold Geerdts
Anastacia Nel
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