NMMU SPRINTER HEADS FOR ZIMBABWE
Hard work has paid off, he says, and his dream is the Olympics
EASTERN Cape sprinter Luxolo Adams will be chasing gold at the CAA Southern Region Senior Championships in Harare, Zimbabwe, this weekend. Adams, 20, who runs for the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University Club, is the only athlete from the province who made the cut for the Athletics SA national team.
Adams will take part in the 100m and 200m sprints during the two-day event. “I am quite excited,” he said. “This is my first time making the national team, so hopefully it’s going to be a good experience.
“I am expecting a great competitive weekend, especially running against other countries.
“Hopefully, I [will] bring a gold medal back.”
The Burgersdorp-born athlete said he had now been running for seven years and hoped one day to take part in the Olympics, the World Championships and the Diamond leagues.
Two years ago, Olympic sprinter Anaso Jobodwana visited Adams at his old school, Ndzondelelo High, in Zwide.
The athlete said the advice Jobodwana gave him that day had contributed to his performance in the past year, which has caught the eye of ASA.
“That year I was looking thinner,” Adams said.
“He said I [should] build up my upper body and focus on what I want, [and] start making decisions on what I want in life. [That has] helped me a lot in terms of my preparation and the times I have run since then.” He had improved a great deal. “I look much better than I was back in high school.”
As part of his preparation for the African Championships this weekend, Adams took part in the AGN meeting in Pretoria last weekend and took first place in the 200m.
“The win was a good confidence booster ahead of this weekend. “My preparations have been good. “I am working with a very good coach in Gerrie Posthumus, who knows what he is doing.
“I am also a very disciplined athlete and I have goals.
“I deserve this opportunity to be in the team, because I have worked so hard going to the SA Championships, [and finishing] second and third.
“I never gave up. That pushed me to work harder so that I [could be] selected, and that day has come.
“I think this is a good direction for me, going to the African Champs.
“This is a great opportunity for me to show my talent,” he said.
I think this is a good direction for me, going to the African Champs. This is a great opportunity for me to go and show my talent