Was great doing the Winelands 21km. Slowly starting to get my mojo back :-)
Multisports AC upoaded some Winelands photo's!
Juan van Deventer clocks personal best
Beijing Olympic 1 500m finalist Juan van Deventer continued with his build-up for the international track season with his third victory in the RAC Tough One 32km, clocking his fastest time to date of one hour, 43 minutes and 33 seconds.In near perfect weather conditions the 22-year-old UJ B.Comm graduate ran almost uncontested for much of the tough loop around Johannesburg's northern suburbs.
"I was hoping to go a little faster but nobody wanted to race today. I don't know what's going on, we have got to push harder if we want good times. Only Lucky (Mohale) stayed with me until ten kilometres to go and even he dropped off the pace.
"My first race in 2007 was a 1:47, then last year I did a 1:45 so running a PB again gives me lots of hope for the World Indoor Champs in Doha (March) and the Commonwealth Games in New Delhi (October). I recon I could run under 1:40 at the coast but the last five kilometres of today's race was tough going," said the winner.
He was followed home by Mohale (1:44:55), Charles Tjiane (1:46:04) and Aaron Gabonewe (1:48:08).
The women's field was loaded with talent, but in a repeat of the men's run nobody was prepared to go full-out this late in the season. In the end it was Pretoria's Marelise Retief (Nedbank) who did enough to win in 2:03:33.
Elizabeth Mtombeni (Matlakeng) is struggling to shake off the 'bridesmaid' tag after again finishing second, ahead of Adinda Kruger (2:13:39) and her Nedbank teammate Irvette van Blerk who is struggling back to form (2:16:11).
Bolt and Richards are World Athletes of the Year – 2009 World Athletics Gala
Monte-Carlo – During the celebrations of the World Athletics Gala hosted by International Athletic Foundation (IAF) Honorary President HSH Prince Albert II of Monaco and IAF & IAAF President Lamine Diack in the Salle des Etoiles of the Sporting Club d’Eté, Monte Carlo, on Sunday 22 November, 23-year-old Jamaican Usain Bolt and USA’s 24-year-old Sanya Richards were crowned as the Male and Female World Athletes of the Year 2009.Bolt, who again captivated the attention of the sporting world with his World 100m and 200m gold medals, earned the honour for the second consecutive year.
“It’s been an amazing season, but also a trying season,” said Bolt, who broke his own World records with stunning 9.58 and 19.19 performances at Berlin’s Olympic Stadium. “To be named athlete of the year is such a great honour, it shows that all the work we put in pays off.”
Like Bolt in the shorter sprints, Richards dominated the women’s 400m, producing seven of the year’s 10 fastest performances and finally won her first World title.
“I was asked if this feeling would be the same as being World champion and it really is,” said Richards, who had previously been named World Athlete of the Year in 2006. “Considering the other athletes I was up against this year, I know this must have been a really tough decision.”
2009 World Athletics Gala Awards
Male World Athlete of the Year
Usain Bolt (JAM)
Female World Athlete of the Year
Sanya Richards (USA)
Coach of the Year
Clyde Hart (USA)
Inaugural IAAF World Journalist Award
Gustav Schwenk (GER)
IAAF
ASA board raises eyebrows
Johannesburg – A number of South African athletes are up in arms over the make-up of the interim board of Athletics South Africa (ASA).It is believed that two supporters of suspended athletics boss Leonard Chuene have made it onto the body.
Some of the athletes that camped outside the offices of the South African Sports Confederation and Olympics Committee (SASCOC) in Johannesburg on Saturday, to hear who will serve on the new board, were unhappy after hearing that Alex Skhosana (KwaZulu-Natal) and James Moloi (Central Gauteng) had been elected.
Hezekiel Sepeng, who has just been elected interim deputy president of Athletics Central North West, is also upset because his province could not participate in the elections.
“I cannot support the new board. I will first have to speak to our athletes and hear what we have to do,” he said.
Other athletes were satisfied with the election.
“Of course we would have liked 50% representation on the board, but we only got 40%,” said Hendrick Ramaala, who is one of South Africa’s leading marathon runners and a new board member.
“It’s the first time that athletes have been so well represented. I believe that if we lobby on the board, we will be able to ensure that athletes’ interests are looked after.”
The other athletes on the board are Geraldine Pillay, a former Olympic and Commonwealth Games athlete, and Blanche Moila, the first black woman to have won Springbok colours in 1984.
A fourth athlete will be co-opted from the South African Athletics Committee onto the board.
It will in all probability be Olympic athlete Ruben Ramolefi.
Ray Mali, chairperson of ASA’s interim board, described the election as an historic day for South African athletes and the start of a new era.
He said that the new board would run athletics until all the investigations into alleged irregularities had run their course.
If everything goes according to plan, the election of the permanent board will happen by the end of May.
“I have good news for the athletes and it is that numerous sponsors are once again interested in getting involved.”
As far as unhappiness about Moloi and Skhosana are concerned, Mali said that Central Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal were free to put in motions of no confidence. He will take the matter further if that happens.
Central North West’s problems arose because of Adam Motlagale refusing to accept that he had been suspended at a special meeting last week. He and Dr Paul van der Merwe, who is serving as interim chairperson, both pitched at Saturday’s meeting.
Kaya Majeke of SASCOC told them that not one of the two may attend the meeting until they have sorted out the matter.
Van der Merwe spent about four hours trying to explain to Motlagale that his suspension had been carried out in line with Central North West’s constitution. This happened in front of the media.
Motlagale refused to accept this and eventually threatened to break away and establish his own athletics province.
A few athletes from Central Gauteng threatened to boycott next year’s events unless a solution can be found regarding Moloi.
The other members of the interim board are: James Evans (WP), James Mokoka (Gauteng North), Pieter Lourens (Boland) and Daan Louw (Border).
Teen shatters great Ethiopian Run record
Youngster Tilahun Regassa on Sunday broke the course record for the men's Great Ethiopian Run, upsetting favourites in the annual 10 kilometre road race.
The 19-year-old shaved 30 seconds off the previous record by clocking 28 minutes 36 seconds to outrun 33 000 participants and clinch a surprise victory.
"I've run the marathon and half-marathon before but this is my first win in a ten kilometre race," he said.
"I hope I'll raise the Ethiopian flag in other tournaments like my fellow athletes soon," he added.
Track and long distance legend Haile Gebrselasie, who kickstarted the race with Britain's star athlete Paula Radcliffe, said the win highlighted Ethiopia's reputation as an "athletics factory".
"It's just amazing. There is so much excitement among youngsters here," the 35-year-old two-time Olympic champion said.
"There is no dispute that Ethiopia is an athletics factory. You will see more and more like me in the future," Gebrselasie added.
Favourite Deriba Merga, who took fourth in the Beijing Olympics' marathon, was not even able to conclude the race, while last year's winner Chala Dechassa fell well short of a podium finish this time around.
In the women's race, 23-year-old Koreni Jelila also broke the course record with 33 minutes and three seconds, more than 40 seconds faster than the previous record set in 2007.
The Great Ethiopian Run has revealed some of the world's greatest long-distance runners.
The annual race, regarded as a key stepping stone for Ethiopian athletes, has been held since 2001. Past winners include Gebrselassie and the women's current Olympic 5 000m and 10 000m champion Tirunesh Dibaba.
Last year's edition however, was marred by reported terrorist threats in the capital which prompted the US and Dutch governments to advise their citizens against taking part.
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