SPECIAL FEATURE
Obsessed with Sport
As a youngster , Leigh trained as an elite artistic gymnast , which instilled in her a lifelong love of physical exercise ( and a mild obsession , she admits ). She took up underwater hockey while at Rhodes and went on to earn national colours in the sport . “ To make a long story short , my parents got divorced , so I focused my attention on sport , and did well enough to make the national team . Sometimes life throws things at you , and you have a number of options how you handle it … you can drink or do drugs , but I took that anger and hurt , and channelled it into underwater hockey ,” says Leigh .
“ I gave up the typical student lifestyle and focused on my sport , and thanks to that I was selected for the South African team for the 2013 World Champs in Hungary , where I think we came fifth . The sport is actually a lot bigger than expected , with nearly 20 countries playing it , and South Africa has done well through the years . We ’ re really up there . I haven ’ t played for a while , but would like to play again some time .”
One of the main reasons Leigh has moved away from underwater hockey since her varsity days , is that she took up running , going on to become a marathon runner on the road and an ultra-trail mountain runner . Unfortunately , she tended to overdo things just a bit , and it led to an injury nightmare . “ I became obsessed with the beauty – and brutality – of ultra-trail running , wanting to enter every possible race I could find . I couldn ’ t always afford these ultra-trail races , so I proceeded to enter back-to-back shorter , cheaper races , to satisfy my desire to run ,” says Leigh .
In spite of various concerned questions from family and friends about over-racing and injury , Leigh ran the West Coast Half marathon on a Saturday followed by the Table Mountain Challenge 44km the next day , in spite of raw feet from blisters suffered during the half marathon . Then she ran the Cape Town PEACE Trail 22km for Team SPCA , raising nearly R5400 in the process , followed the next day by the Sanlam Cape Town Marathon . She did manage a 4:05 finish , taking 10 minutes off her marathon PB , but was disappointed at not breaking four hours .
Leigh and Talitha Noble training with Bob the green turtle
“ I ’ m still not entirely sure what led me to this idea of back-to-back races . I guess I just want to be extraordinary ! I have this unshakeable need to push my personal limits , with a burning desire to inspire others in the process . That said , I don ’ t feel pressure from anyone but myself . I know that I do not have anything to prove to anyone , but I am also aware that I am my biggest critic and my own worst enemy . That is something I am still trying to work through ,” admits Leigh .
The Struggle Begins
Unfortunately , Leigh did eventually succumb to injury , and after struggling with pain in her hip for some time , she was eventually diagnosed with a runninginduced right femoral neck stress fracture , and had to use crutches for four months . She was just getting back into running when the COVID-19 Lockdown restrictions were introduced , forcing her to join colleagues in running around the Aquarium building and parking lot in order to get a daily run in . They also took advantage of the Aquarium ’ s big water displays to get in some swim training , alongside the stingrays , fish and turtles . “ We even completed the Robben
Leigh in her natural element , on a mountain
Island Freedom Swim virtual challenge , swimming 7.5km for turtle conservation in a tank that is 19 metres wide . Bob the green turtle was an amazing coach and companion during this time !” says Leigh .
However , once lockdown was relieved and Leigh could run again , she began to notice a pain in her left thigh . “ I panicked at the thought of another stress fracture . The last one was my right femoral neck . This time , I suspected my left femoral shaft .” After a battery of consults and tests with various doctors , Leigh was eventually diagnosed with what is known as the Female Athlete Triad , a combination of three conditions : Menstrual dysfunction / amenorrhea , low bone density / osteoporosis , and low energy levels ( with or without an eating disorder ). “ My fractures were as a result of low bone mineral density , as a scan confirmed that I have osteopenia in my femurs and lumbar spine . I had a major sense of humour failure when I found out about all of this ,” admits Leigh .
“ Ironically , I now view both my femoral fractures as ‘ blessings in disguise .’ Two fractures in six months raised my suspicions of an underlying issue , which I was then able to get diagnosed and treated . However , I now have to accept that ultra trail running is likely a thing of the past for me , but perspective prevails , I still have my legs , and six weeks after the second fracture , I was already up and running again … just slower , and doing shorter distances . Now that I know what the problem is , I can do something about it .”
Taking the Plunge
Typically , Leigh was not going to just sit around and feel sorry for herself , so she threw her energy into a new sporting venture , open water ocean swimming . This has seen her do 8km swims around Cape Point , and a 10km from Simon ’ s Town to Muizenberg , in recent months . “ There were moments during those swims when I felt blissfully calm , and moments when I was filled with fear , with the playlist in my head playing a remix of the Jaws theme tune and The Weekend ’ s Flashing Lights ! Fish Hoek has a history of fatal shark attacks , and that was the section of the 10km swim that scared me most , so this was both a physical and mental challenge for me .”
Next Leigh signed up to swim the Robben Island Freedom Swim , from the island to Blaauwberg , along with fellow marine biologists Talitha Noble and Alison Towner , to raise funds for various marine projects and
Images : Allison Potter , Cleeve Robertson & Sean Altern
16 ISSUE 138 FEBRUARY 2021 / www . modernathlete . co . za