Adriaan with girlfriend Rachel Johnson at her first FSU graduation |
||||||||
|
important to me , such as salary , the group , really good training facilities , great location , and all those things . I was , like , well , a good salary would be good , just considering where I ’ m coming from , and I could probably help my family as well . But also , I want to make sure that I can improve so that I can exploit even more opportunities in that regard .
They were able to find me a place that offers a really good salary and bonus structure and all that , but also a training group that is at a perfect location for performance , which is at 7,000 feet in elevation , with a group that consists right now of about 20 athletes . There are marathoners , 10K people and 5K people , so that ’ s everybody to train with , and the coaching is at a high level . We also have our own facility there , with gym and weights , and we have four massages a month and all that . We have everything we need , because it ’ s a professional set-up . So , I decided I might as well stay in the USA , as it was too good of an opportunity to turn down , and I signed a contract for three-and-a-half years , and so far , it ’ s been treating me really well .
|
MA : On a slightly different note , I believe you met your girlfriend , Rachel Johnson , as a fellow athlete at Florida State ? I know that you now regularly visit her in Florida , which means flying a couple of hours from Flagstaff , but do you mind if I ask for a bit more detail of the relationship ?
AW : Yeah , we met in my last year at FSU , which was a little awkward , because she was still an undergrad and I knew I was going to leave for Flagstaff , while she would be staying for her Masters , meaning she would still be in Florida for at least two more years . So , we had to figure that out , and now I fly to Florida regularly to visit her . That ’ s actually working well for me , because I am still getting used to the new environment in Flagstaff , and the training and everything , and sometimes it ’ s good to just focus on what you ’ re trying to do . So , she started her Masters in August , and should be graduating in about a yearand-a-half
|
. Then she may be moving to Flagstaff as well . In the meantime , she is visiting South Africa for the first time in December , when we come over or two weeks .
MA : Speaking of plans … In the last year-plus you ’ ve been to the World champs twice , and the Commonwealth Games , and you ’ ve spoken about qualifying for the Olympics next year , so I would assume Paris is your focus right now , but that sub- 28 also shows that you could transition to the road and make that your focus . So , do you see yourself staying on the track for the next couple of years , or branching out to road ?
AW : If Paris goes well , I ’ ll probably stay on the track for another cycle , at least two to four more years , for the next Olympic cycle , but I ’ ll do a 10K or 5K on the road here and there , and I plan to do a half marathon next year around this time . I was looking to do the Valencia Half in Spain now , but then I qualified for the Olympics , so I decided it ’ s not the right time to try that right now . But as I said earlier , I ’ m not so intense about what the future holds . I am just trying to enjoy the time that I have in running , and trying to break as many records and put in good performances as much as I can . That ’ s what motivates me … getting faster , getting better , breaking records . It ’ s competition that really makes me want to do it more .
MA : And for now , do you have any thoughts about staying in the USA or coming back to SA ?
AW : Well , I can ’ t really say for now . It depends on how serious Rachel and I get , and how that works out , but I would probably like to stay in the US as long as my running career continues . That ’ s probably the most definite answer I have right now : As long as I am running competitively , I ’ ll probably stay here , then after that , I ’ ll decide what I want to do . I can be competitive on so many different levels , though , it doesn ’ t have to be sport . I just need to be competitive . That ’ s really what drives me .
|
Feeling relaxed about his running , just seeing where it takes him |
Images : Courtesy Adriaan Wildschutt , NAZ Elite |