LJ aiming for Games
Top hurdler training for spot in athletics squad
STAR South African hurdler Louis Jacobus (LJ) van Zyl is hard at work preparing for possible selection to the South African athletics team attending the Commonwealth Games in Australia in April.
Van Zyl is one of the coaches at the Bestmed Madibaz Athletics Clinic being held at Uitenhage’s Daniel Pienaar Technical High School until tomorrow.
The clinic, which started yesterday, will feature several athletes and coaches sharing their knowledge with coaches and athletes, including Van Zyl and Bay discus thrower Ischke Senekal.
Attendees can choose to attend either the coaching clinic or the Athletics South Africa Level 1 or 2 courses.
Van Zyl, 32, is chasing his fourth Commonwealth Games after being provisionally selected for the SA athletics squad.
“I didn’t even go on my endof-year holiday,” he said.
“I just stayed in Pretoria to continue preparing for the Games. I will also be competing in a race for the Tuks Athletics Club at the weekend.
“Preparations are going well. Our national championships are in March and we need to be in top shape earlier than usual as all events have moved to an earlier date due to the Games,” he said.
His most notable achievements last year included podium finishes at the Shanghai and Doha IAAF Diamond League events, as well as running his 154th career sub-50second time in his speciality 400m hurdles at an event in Zagreb, Croatia.
He was also in the Diamond League final in Zurich.
At the clinic, he is teaching the basics of hurdling to the athletes, and various factors involved in the discipline.
“I also want to motivate them,” he said.
“I’m not going to change an athlete’s technique in one or two days, but I can teach them about drills they can use to improve their technique. I’ve got a big passion for hurdles, especially the 400m event.
“If I can motivate just one athlete, who will then compete at the Olympics in four or five years, my job is done.”
Madibaz athletics manager Nellis Bothma said the event was aimed at increasing the number of young athletics coaches.
The coaching course lectures were conducted by qualified, level 3 or above coaches, while the coaching clinic was conducted by athletes from the Madibaz Athletics Club.
“We are in need of coaches, the schools are in need of coaches. The system is changing, but there are no coaches,” he said.
“Therefore we would love to create a coaches’ club or association and increase the number of coaches because if you teach children wrong from the start, you won’t have a lot of success.”
Rozario Williams, 16, from Hangklip High School in Queenstown, said he was excited to acquire as much as he could from Van Zyl.
“It is an honour to learn from a renowned athlete like LJ, and I hope to also reach the heights he has,” he said.