TRAIL RUNNING been getting in some solid training there , too , with the blessing of my coach , Lindsey Parry . My former coach always forbade me from running trails , so training and racing off-road is new to me . I ’ ve been struggling with a chronic Achilles injury , but it ’ s a little less painful on trails than on paved roads , so perhaps this is good for me !”
Starting a New Chapter
Another big change has seen Ann join the Phantane running club , an elite and development team that was founded by coach Mduduzi Khumalo in 2013 in the Avoca Hills area . Aware of the hardships faced by young athletes from disadvantaged backgrounds , Mduduzi set out to identify young talent and assist these athletes to earn an income through running , and while most Phantane members focus on track , cross-country and shorter road racing up to 21km , the club also took the elite men ’ s team prize at the 2019 Comrades .
“ I have been following Mdu ’ s work closely , and I feel we ’ re on the same page in terms of upliftment and development of athletes . A lot of his athletes have no retainers or shoe sponsors , but have uplifted themselves through sport , which makes their success all the more inspiring ,” says Ann . “ The club actually has no other top women , which is why I initially didn ’ t join them , but Mdu and I have agreed that I will build up and manage a women ’ s team , so all of the Team Massmart women will be joining Phantane , and we ’ ve started the process to register a club in Gauteng for them .
“ We ’ re also going to start a development team in KZN for women . At Massmart we focused on ultra distances , but to do development properly , you need to focus on grassroots distances , so we will go back to looking at shorter distances and build up over time in KZN . In the meantime , I hope that my Massmart squad of runners are established enough to attract sponsors , invites to races and media coverage . The most important thing for me , the only thing I want to do with my life , is to make a difference , whether that ’ s in my legal work as an advocate , or in my running and work in the world of athletics .”
Building Up for Another Go
Looking ahead , Ann says that she is building up to the Sanlam Cape Town Marathon in October – if it goes ahead , of course , given COVID restrictions – and then in December she will tackle the UTCT , as she has been given an entry for the 100km following her UTD victory . “ David says he is ‘ busy ’ that day , so won ’ t be running the 100km with me ,” she says laughingly . “ Seriously though , he may want to race something on the Sunday in Joburg , so we may need some nifty logistics to make it all work , but otherwise he may race one of the shorter distances at UTCT . He quite likes mountain marathons of around 40km , but said he doesn ’ t want to run that far again .”
“ After that I will probably take a few weeks off before I start training for the 2022 Comrades . I think the women ’ s race will be one hell of a race , if everybody that has said they want to run actually does line up . The tendency in the women ’ s race is for somebody to take the lead around midway , then race for the record or jus the win , but it doesn ’ t make it particularly
“ we finished in the top 10 in 12:59 , setting a new women ’ s record , with our sense of humour and our marriage intact ... subject to the proviso that I never , ever enter David into a 100km race again !”
Images : Cuan Walker , David Ashworth & courtesy Ann Ashworth & Phantane Running Club
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