Cronje braces for final push for the Games
OLD AND THE NEW: Johan Cronje, left, must still qualify for Rio. Henricho Bruintjies has IF ALYSSA Conley is the fresh-faced newcomer dreaming of the Olympics, Johan Cronje is the grizzled veteran trying to lift himself for one final hurrah.
Both will be in action at the SA championships in Stellenbosch on Friday and Saturday. Participation there is obligatory for Rio 2016 selection, although athletes do not have to achieve qualifying performances there.
Conley, who lost the past three seasons to injuries, clocked her third qualifying time of the year at a North West University meet in Sasolburg on Friday night, going 11.31sec in the 100m.
Twice this season the 24year-old has dipped below the 11.32 criterion for the 100m, and once below 23.20 in her preferred 200m event.
Her effort on Friday wasn’t bad considering the cold night air, which made men’s 100m winner Henricho Bruintjies happy with his 10.20.
Cronje, the 1 500m bronze medallist at the 2013 world championships, has yet to find his form.
The Bloemfontein-based father of one started training late. The reason? “To be honest, motivation.
“It’s priorities shifting, I guess. It’s new things in my work and personal life that keep me excited.
“On [the athletics] side, every year is the same thing, so after a while you just [think] ‘ag, no’,” said Cronje, who turns 34 on Wednesday.
“Then in the end you think it is an Olympic year, it’ll probably be my last, so let that be my motivation. If that’s not going to motivate you then nothing’s going to.
“I have that to keep me going for now, and if it’s a good season maybe it motivates me for the next season, but if it isn’t, then I guess that’s it.”
Cronje competed at his first Olympics in 2004 but, overawed, he spent too much time eating free fast food in the athletes’ village instead of focusing on the job at hand.
He figured he would have more opportunities — he was wrong.
Cronje missed Beijing 2008 because of injury, and then missed London 2012 because of the bizarre rule by the SA Olympic Committee (Sascoc) that required athletes to achieve two qualifying times.
If it’s a good season maybe it motivates me for the next season
Cronje bagged one time, but narrowly missed out on the second a couple of times. He proved the rule’s stupidity by his world championship success the next year.
This year, Cronje hopes to qualify by early June at the latest so he doesn’t have to attempt a desperate rush of trying to qualify, as he did in 2012 when he raced five times in 10 days in Europe.
Also still to qualify is 400m hurdler Cornel Fredericks, who is returning from an injury-plagued 2015.
Caster Semenya, however, appears to be returning to top form, having posted a 400m personal best earlier in the season.
She is thinking of a triple crown in Stellenbosch by maybe adding the 400m and 1 500m to her 800m speciality.