TRACK & FIELD
Every time Pretoria-based Jovan van Vuuren competes in a long jump competition , it is with the idea to come as close as possible to that ultimate performance . “ To me , perfection is that chase to an ever-elusive goal . The thing is that you can never give up . You ’ ve got to keep on going for it . It means striving to be better today than you were yesterday . That is how records get set ,” says the man who certainly set some records this past year ! His breakthrough moment was winning a bronze medal at the Commonwealth Games , having also represented his country at the African Champs and World Champs , and along the way he won his first SA title and improved his best to 8.16 metres , moving him up to seventh on the all-time list for SA jumpers .
Jovan came into 2023 with his sights set on doing even better than in his breakthrough year of 2022
What makes his 2022 performances all the more remarkable is that Jovan could hardly train for the second half of 2021 , after he was diagnosed as having two fractures in his pelvis . He had to undergo serious rehabilitation from July to December of that year , including a lot of what he calls “ strange exercises ,” but that was not the worst of it . “ My biggest disappointment was not competing at the Tokyo Olympic Games . Emotionally it took its toll , I was truly down and out . There was a stage where I was asking myself why I was putting in all the long , hard hours if I couldn ' t achieve what I had set out to do . But sometimes a setback can be good , and I was certainly more motivated .”
When Jovan could start jumping seriously again in January 2022 , he says he did so with a totally different attitude to his training . “ The experience with the injury brought about a change in how I go about things . I focused more on being consistent , and making the most of every opportunity , because I realised that you can ' t take anything for granted . I therefore began competing as if each meeting was my last ,” he explains . And this attitude certainly paid dividends last year .
PUSHING HIS LIMITS
In spite of the setbacks in 2021 , Jovan began 2022 strongly , and in March , he jumped that new personal best 8.16m at the Gauteng North Championships , on his home track at Pretoria University . He followed that a few days later with an 8.14m at the ASA Grand Prix meeting in Bloemfontein . His previous best had been the 8.10m he jumped in 2019 , but even a six-centimetre improvement did not satisfy Jovan ,
Coach Neil Cornelius gives Jovan invaluable feedback during training sessions
Neil Cornelius , and I have worked hard on improving my big match temperament , or BMT . Often during practice , Neil creates a scenario where I need to achieve a specific goal . The idea is to get me used to performing at my best when pressured .
and he said at the time , “ I know I have not yet come close to executing the perfect jump . I would rate my performance at Tuks as a 6 out of 10 effort , and the jump in Bloem was 5 out 10 . Those were ' lazy ' jumps , and I know I made mistakes that cost me extra centimetres .”
Furthermore , Jovan said that another thing he does to ensure he can handle pressure situations , is to regularly challenges himself during training . “ I love making side bets with fellow athletes on the track . I tell them that I will jump a specific distance , and if I don ' t , I could end up doing five more repetitions of a particular exercise ... But if I succeed , then they are the ones who need to do more !”
FIRST MAJOR TITLE
In April , Jovan once again showed his BMT to win the gold medal at the South African Athletics
Jovan ’ s career came on in leaps and bounds last year .
He added , “ At least I am consistent . Since last year my coach , Neil Cornelius , and I have worked hard on improving my big match temperament , or BMT . Often during practice , Neil creates a scenario where I need to achieve a specific goal . The idea is to get me used to performing at my best when pressured . That is paying dividends , because in Bloemfontein , I had a bad day at the office . My body felt dead and I could not get going , but I had a stern talk to myself , reminding myself that I had spent many hours in the car to drive to Bloemfontein to compete , and that it would be a shame if it ended up being time wasted . Then my ‘ BMT ’ kicked in .”
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