PEOPLE » DONOVAN GELDENHUYS
until 18km into the run, when I had severe
cramps and lost a lot of time. I really
wanted to run sub 01:20 but I managed
01:22ish, which I guess with my running
quality I had to be content with. I ended
up 2nd in my AG but fairly far down on the
overall AG standing, so I was disappointed
with that. I always race for overall so I felt it
was a fairly mediocre performance – but a
step in the right direction.
My wife raced with the women on the
Saturday and I experienced for myself
how supporter friendly the swim and run
courses are. The race itself was as well
organised as any SA IRONMAN event –
everything always works so well and you
feel safe out on the course with great road
closures and ample food and water.
72
guy and love time with my family, so the
more I’m at home, the happier I am!
My wife is also a triathlete. She loves
doing her rides outside, whereas I prefer
the indoors. Four hours when training for
70.3 and six hours for an IRONMAN is a
long time on the trainer so I do anything
I can to entertain myself, even if it means
doing homework with the kids from the
trainer, reading books, etc.
My second passion is studying/research
and reading. I’m enrolling for my MBA and
completing a masters in Company Law
and Tax soon, so things can get a little bit
busier, but I like it. I like to improve and
learn continuously, be it in triathlon, at my
job or my general knowledge in the field
I’m working in. Triathlon alone doesn’t
stimulate me and I need more.
What does it take to be an elite
amateur as opposed to a professional
triathlete who has more training and
recovery time. Do you ever wonder
what may have been had you turned
pro? My triathlon journey started in
2012 and I then slowly wobbled along
until around 2015/2016, when I started
training a little harder. As I improved, I
always wanted to see how far I could go.
I think the biggest difference with being
an amateur with a full-time job and family
is that you can never plan too far ahead
and that you have to be flexible. Recovery
is the one thing we generally neglect;
when we get a gap, we train, whereas a
pro can use that time to sleep/recover. I
also tend to neglect proper warm-up and
warm-down protocol, which can lead to
injury, as I’m normally rushed for time. But
I cannot complain – I do what I need to
and my family supports me immensely.
Pro triathlon racing seems like a dream
job. I love travelling and that part of the
‘job’ I would really enjoy, but I wouldn’t
be able to only train. It doesn’t stimulate
and fulfil me at all and, even if I get the
opportunity to only do triathlon, I will most
definitely study or work part-time for some
extra stimulation and challenge.
Take us through an average week in
the life of ‘Frank the tank’ (and tell
us where that name comes from).
The nickname comes from my days at
the University of Stellenbosch. I used to
drink a little bit too much and turned into
a rowdy character, so got called ‘Frank the
You work a full-time, high-pressure
job as a chartered accountant and
have a wife and kids. How do you find
time for the solid training you put in
between all your other commitments?
Do you work and chat to your kids
on your indoor trainer? When I lived
in Cape Town, my commute into work
was over two hours a day, which was a
complete waste of time. Now in Durban, I
live a five minutes’ drive from work which
gives me an extra few hours for training
everyday. I have also moved 80% of my
biking indoors only and running I do
mostly on the treadmill, so I cut out a lot of
the waiting time for group rides that I can
now rather spend with my family.
I work full-time as Chief Financial
Officer for a fuel distributor in Durban
called Woman of Africa Fuels and Oils.
They are one of the biggest independent
fuel distributors in the country, so
things can get stressful at times. I’m
very fortunate that our executive team
supports me in my IRONMAN journey and
that I can be fairly flexible with my work
hours when things are running smoothly.
I typically start my day around 4:30am
to 5am, clear a few emails, wake the kids
up around 6am and when they leave, I
either start my indoor biking at 6:30 or my
swim at 6:45. I generally train until around
8:15 every morning, followed by breakfast,
and then head off to the office. My second
session of the day I either fit in around
lunchtime or leave work around 4pm so I
can train and still get home by 5:30. The
kids go to bed at 7:30, at which time I will
clear emails and do some admin before
heading to bed at 8:30. I’m a very private