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Elsa Swanepoel goes for gold
Elsa Swanepoel from University Estates proves that age is just a number when it comes to physical fitness. She did Unisa and South Africa proud this year after participating at the South African Masters Athletics (SAMA), which encourages, organises, and manages athletics for men and women aged 35 years and over. Swanepoel walked away with gold and silver in a number of categories.
SAMA is a testament to the vision, passion, and determination of many athletes who continue athletics throughout their lives and demonstrates that age is no barrier in the quest of excellence, good sportsmanship, and lasting friendships. It is the tale of ordinary athletes and administrators achieving the extraordinary, using their skills and commitment for the benefit of their fellow athletes. Swanepoel has certainly lived up to this vision.
She participated in the 100, 200, and 400 metres but had to withdraw from the 800 m because of the flu. Here are her results:
Gauteng North Masters Athletics Championships
400m: Gold in a time of 1:10.10
800m: Silver in a time of 2:55.91
Central Gauteng Masters Athletics Championships
100m: Gold in a time of 14,96 sec
400m: Gold in a time of 1:11.32
800m: Gold in a time of 2:52.71
South African Masters Championships
100m: Silver in a time of 14.8 sec
200m: Silver in a time of 30.95 sec
400m: Gold in a time of 1:08.4 – this is 0.5 sec outside the SA record.
SAMA was held over two consecutive days this year. It’s become so popular that it will be held over a period of three days as from next year. To qualify for national colours an athlete should participate in two consecutive years.
Once a runner, always a runner for Swanepoel. She was a sprinter while in school and then started with long distances and completed many marathons and ultra-marathons. She was introduced to masters track athletics and participated in the age group 55-59. “Although I became a cycling enthusiast, the idea to participate in track athletics tickled me. I gave it some thought and in January 2016 I started to participate in the Northern Gauteng and Central Gauteng championships, initially only 400 m and 800 m. I ran very good times, but not good enough for the SA Masters. I was still training for the Cape Argus cycling event at the time and couldn’t focus on the athletics as I should have and only started to train at the end of March,” she explained.
Not even rain could stop Swanepoel from taking gold in the 400 m.
Preparing for sprints, Swanepoel said, “is all about having the desire to train and persevere until every fibre in your legs is turned to steel and when you’ve finally forged hard enough, you will have become the best runner you can be”. She admits that she has good runs and tough runs, on and off days, weeks of incredible progress and weeks of falling behind schedule. “But I will never have a bad run because there is no such thing. Every run is a blessing. I am proud of every run I do simply because I did it. If you run, you are a runner. It doesn’t matter how fast or how far. It doesn’t’ matter if today is your first day or if you’ve been running for twenty years. There is no test to pass, no licence to earn, no membership card to get. You just run. It is such a pleasure to do things you thought you could not do,” she said.
One of the things that Swanepoel is working on is that she does get a little stressed and loses some sleep before an event, wondering if she was on the right training plan. “Experts say not all stress is bad—it can sometimes boost the performance. Although I can’t illustrate the stress that I undergo before the time, the running can thrive when it’s free of pressure and anxiety. The trick is to find a happy middle ground.”
Swanepoel’s running career goes back to 2000, when she completed her first Comrades. She ran a second Comrades in 2001, achieving a Bill Rowan medal for completing the gruelling race in less than 9 hours. She also won a number of road races during that period, despite the fact that she was a Veteran and competed against ladies much younger. She is also a very enthusiastic cyclist and has completed the 94.7, Amashova, and the Argus Cape Tour events.
Publish date: 2016/10/17
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