CONTENTS
COLUMN
FEATURE
29
30
The rope is going to Shanghai
The Rope Runner Marissa Groenewald fills us in on her exciting plans ahead of an international debut.
Blom lands the big one for SA in Norway
From a childhood spent fishing to a world title in Norway, Marlize“ Blom” Heyns has proved that big dreams – and even bigger fish – are there for the catching.
NUTRITION
34
Fuel without fear
Sports nutritionist Candice De Mendonça fills us in on understanding calories, kilojoules, and what your body actually needs to perform.
COLUMN
36
The " active couch potato " trap
Biokineticist Leandri Willis spills the beans on why your desk job might just be sabotaging your running.
FEATURE
EVENTS
40
42
47
Cricket with a twist
It may look different from the cricket we know, but Table Cricket is every bit as competitive, and it gives young players facing different challenges a chance to find their place in the game.
Kilometres into classrooms
More than 100 cyclists rode from Mozambique to the Nelson Mandela Capture Site in the KwaZulu-Natal Midlands in support of # Classrooms4Hope.
46
South Africa’ s first-ever padel nationals arrive this October
Padel 365 will host the Growthpoint SA Nationals Padel Championships 2026 this October- the first-ever National Padel Championships to be held in South Africa.
October events to look out for
Check out some of the major events around the world to look out for in October.
PUBLISHERS Richard Laskey Roxanne Martin
ADVERTISING SALES Richard Laskey: 083 342 8200 Richard @ modernathlete. co. za
DIGITAL SALES & CAMPAIGNS Roxanne Martin – 072 368 7390 Roxanne @ modernathlete. co. za
FIND US
GENERAL E-MAIL info @ modernathlete. co. za
EDITORIAL E-MAIL letters @ modernathlete. co. za
WEB www. modernathlete. co. za
EDITORIAL TEAM
EDITOR: Karien Jonckheere Karien @ modernathlete. co. za
DESIGNER: Alyssa Dixon
DIGITAL CONTENT MANAGER: Roxanne Martin
EDITORIAL CONTRIBUTORS: Candice De Mendonça, Karien Jonckheere, Leandri Willis, Marissa Groenewald, Mark Etheridge, Rory Petzer
Back cover image courtesy of Mattia Ozbot / World Athletics
FACEBOOK @ modernathletemag
X @ modern _ athlete
INSTAGRAM @ modernathletemag
www. modernathlete. co. za 3