RACE WALKING
I could when I was young , but long distance running really stuck . In primary school I specialised in the 1500m , then moved up to the 3000m and crosscountry in high school . That was my niche . While I was in high school I also joined Stellenbosch Athletics Club and did cross country and road running , while also playing soccer for Koelenhof FC , based near to Simonsig . So most Saturdays I was running in the morning , and playing soccer in the afternoon ,” he recalls .
Denzel on the way to his first marathon medal in Cape Town
basic education to ensure that we could follow our dreams . They sacrificed much to ensure that this was a possibility for us ,” says Denzel .
In his matric year , he saved up some money to pay for a short course in vineyard pruning at nearby Elsenburg Agricultural Training Institute , as a first step towards his dream career , but he says it was not meant to be . Instead , he found himself doing developmental work in township and farming communities in the Cape , writing programmes focused on life skills to help people improve their lives . As part of this , he used sport as a great way to reach the young kids in these communities , while working with Youth Unlimited . “ I used football programmes to keep kids in schools , and that led to me becoming involved in women ’ s football , first with the Ikamva team in Nyanga in 2009 , and then the Burning Spears team in the Koelenhof community near Simonsig . I enjoyed coaching and managing these teams , but my last involvement with them was in 2011 .”
That year , Denzel returned to Simonsig Wines as a wine advisor , and with support from the farm as well as both the SA Wine Industry Transformation Unit and the Graham & Rhona Beck Foundation , he has worked his way through an impressive list of wine studies in the last nine years . These include courses in food and wine pairing , and international wines , through the Cape Wine Academy , a certificate in wine evaluation and a winemaking short course through Stellenbosch University , the South African Sommeliers Association Level 1 course , a management course with Winetech , and formal qualifications from the University of Cape Town Graduate School of Business ( Certificate in the Business of Wine , and a Postgraduate Diploma in Management Practice ).
“ This investment in my career assisted me to hold various positions at Simonsig within a small space of time , from Tasting Room Manager and Wine Club Manager , to becoming a Brand Ambassador for the farm , looking after the coastline region from Cape Town to Durban . As a result , I am seldom at the farm these days , as I spend most of my time travelling up and down the coast , selling and marketing wines to retail outlets and restaurants , attending wine shows , and doing training on our wines . Since my return in 2012 , the wine industry has played a vital part in the successes I have achieved , and I need to thank those who helped me on my way . I have grown professionally in the SA wine industry through the belief many people demonstrated in me by investing in me . And thanks to that , I believe mine has become a story of hope and motivation to other young people .”
Going the Distance
Just as Denzel found his niche in the wine industry a bit later in life , so too did he eventually arrive in race walking , after trying various other sports . “ I come from a very sporty family and I did nearly every sport
Celebrating his eighth place in the Western Province 10km league walk
“ Then one year I did the Big Walk 20km , just for fun , and finished in the top 10 . After that I did another three , always finishing in the top 10 overall , as well as third in the senior category one year . That got me thinking whether I should pursue race walking instead of distance running , and I decided to give walking a go . In recent years I have walked some of the big races , including the Cape Town 12K CityRun twice and the Two Oceans Half Marathon three times . I also did my first 42km at the Sanlam Cape Town Marathon in 2019 , finishing in 5:45:06 . One of highlights for me was the last 4km up to UCT in Two Oceans , and for me the the most rewarding thing was to walk onto that patch of grass and feel the sense of victory , with the people cheering for you . I also loved the support from start to finish of the Cape Town 12 , which made it very special .”
Denzel says that he has become used to comments from runners when participating in events . “ There are so few official walking events on the calendar in Cape Town , and unfortunately , due to my weekend work commitments in recent years , with a lot more travelling , I often miss the league walking events . So more often than not , I have to walk in running events . I always laugh in these races when a surprised runner comments that I walk faster than he or she can run ! But that ’ s one reason I loved the Big Walk , because for a change we got to race against runners trying their hand at walking !”
Looking ahead , Denzel says he would like to make an effort to make it to more league walking events , as he would like to earn his Western Province colours . The other bucket list item is a still bigger challenge . “ The big one for me is the Comrades , with the Two Oceans Marathon as a stepping stone . I would like to do that before I am 40 , so I have five years left to tick that off my bucket list . I will most probably do it in my 39th year , as my 40th will be in August , and the Comrades could be a kind of 40th birthday victory walk for me .”
Paying it Forward
Now that he is no longer working on the farm daily , Denzel has moved to Mitchells Plain with wife Nadae and their two kids , Diego ( 6 ) and Deezaan ( 3 ). He says that having studied both viniculture and viticulture , as well as having done a business degree , he sees his eventual path leading to opening his own wine company , and he is well on his way to that , having launched his own wine range in 2019 , under the Son of the Soil ( SOS ) label .
These wines are sold to raise funds for the non-profit SOS Leadership Foundation , which works to create an environment where previously disadvantaged youth of the Western Cape can become active citizens and participate in building better communities . The foundation ’ s mission is to reduce the number of school dropouts , and thus break the cycle of poverty these youths are often trapped in .
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