By Tshezi ka Jalamba
Wheelchair racer Ernst van Dyk is one of South Africa’s most decorated world-class athletes. But father time is calling, and the thought of retirement and leaving no one to take over does not sit well with the celebrated hand cyclist.
So it’s no surprise he was one of the elite racers invited to take part in this year’s Sanlam Cape Town Marathon this morning as an ambassador of the race.
But he says father time is calling, and not seeing a lot of South Africans follow in his footsteps before he steps away will set the sport backward. The thought of retirement and leaving no one to take over does not sit well with the celebrated hand cyclist.
“Not a lot of work has been done to develop new athletes from grassroots straight up to elite level,” he says. “I mean, we have a major – potentially – in the near future, and only two South Africans lining up on the starting line.”
The wheelchair category was this year added to the Cape Town Marathon as it is one of the criteria that need to be met by the event to become an Abbott World Marathon Major race.
Van Dyk has no less than eight Paralympic medals to his name (two of those gold), along with five World Championship medals. And Van Dyk is no stranger to the Majors: he also has wins in the New York, Paris, and Los Angeles marathons – and a record 10 Boston Marathon wins..
The potential of the Cape Town marathon being a major soon is very exciting, but Van Dyk wants this to be the opportunity for more South Africans to go up against world-class athletes from across the globe.
“Hopefully this race will create that platform, where we have an opportunity to take some guys and develop them and expose them to international athletes right here in Cape Town – so they have that exposure, and they can learn from the guys and be inspired by the guys and be challenged by the guys and hopefully that will flow from there.”
There’s one big problem, though.
“But on the sporting side we have to ask the question, why is nothing being done to develop any more wheelchair marathoners in South Africa?
Van Dyk has been part of wheelchair racing for over 30 years, and though he says retirement is on the horizon, he still has a bit more time to ensure he leaves the competitive side of the sport in good hands.
“I’m almost 50 now, I’m probably going to start thinking about retiring next year – and who is going to follow in my footsteps? Where is the talent? How are we looking to develop that talent and get them to come through?”
As of this year, the Cape Town Marathon is in its three-year evaluation period by Abbott World Marathon Major, which will require the event to meet strict criteria to be successful. If successful they will join an elite group of races recognized as the premier marathons in the world.
Edited by Nicklaus Kruger
