Author: Modern Athlete

From elites to weekend warriors, many athletes do not know the rules of athletics that cover all the running disciplines, and this sometimes leads to a clash with authority, or fellow runners. This month we look at refreshment stations in road races. – BY SEAN FALCONER

Thanks in part to Modern Athlete’s #runclean Campaign, many people are currently debating the use of plastic sachets or cups for handing out water at refreshment points in road races, and the litter problem that results. Some have suggested that all runners should carry their own water in hydration packs or water bottle belts, while others have even said that runners don’t need water in races up to 10km, since they regularly go for 10km training runs without taking water along. Cutting out water tables in races would mean no more plastic litter, but it is actually written into the IAAF rules for road running that water must be supplied to all athletes… and nobody has found a reliable, cost-effective alternative to plastic sachets as yet.

IAAF RULE 240.8: Drinking / Sponging and Refreshment Stations
240.8 (b) For all events, water shall be available at suitable intervals of approximately 5km. For events longer than 10km, refreshments other than water may be made available at these points. Note (i): Where conditions warrant, taking into account the nature of the event, the weather conditions and the state of fitness of the majority of the competitors, water and/or refreshments may be placed at more regular intervals along the route.

This means that official ASA-sanctioned road races must provide water tables at regular intervals, since personal seconding is no longer allowed in road races in this country due to the traffic congestion it causes, and this is covered by Rule 20 of the ASA Rules and Technical Standards, with a few changes from the IAAF rules, notably the minimum distance between refreshment stations.

ASA RULE 20.2: Refreshment Stations and Seconding
20.2.4 Where race organisers impose a restriction on personal seconding, they must provide refreshment stations at least at 3km kilometre intervals throughout the race.

This means that an ASA-sanctioned 10km race must have three water tables, at 3km, 6km and 9km, whereas IAAF rules would actually make it possible to just have one at 5km. That means potentially three times as much litter left on the roads! Some good news is that at least one athletic province has decided to do something about this problem, as seen in the new Western Province Default Rules for Road Running Events:

WPA RULE 17
17 Any athlete accused of irresponsibly disposing of litter may be subject to disciplinary action.

Western Province is to date the only athletic province in South Africa to officially adopt and promote the #runclean Campaign, urging athletes and organisers alike to make a greater effort to stop the litter problem in road races, and many other clubs and events around the country are already actively supporting #runclean as well.

There are also rules that athletes and their supporters must abide by when it comes to the actual handing out of refreshments:

IAAF RULE 240.8
240.8 (e) The Organising Committee shall delineate, by barriers, tables or markings on the ground, the area from which refreshments can be received or collected. Refreshments shall be placed so that they are easily accessible to, or may be put by authorised persons into the hands of, the athletes. No official or authorised person shall, under any circumstances, move beside an athlete while he is taking refreshment or water.
240.8 (g) An athlete may, at any time, carry water or refreshment by hand or attached to his body provided it was carried from the start or collected or received at an official station.
240.8 (h) An athlete who receives or collects refreshment or water from a place other than the official stations, except where provided for medical reasons from or under the direction of race officials, or takes the refreshment of another athlete, should, for a first such offence, be warned by the Referee. For a second offence, the Referee shall disqualify the athlete.

ASA RULE 20.2
20.2.2 Where permitted in race rules, seconds or team officials may assist athletes only at designated refreshment stations by handing them refreshments and water. Seconding is not allowed outside the designated refreshment stations, and seconds/officials shall not, under any circumstances, run beside an athlete taking refreshment. The stand and hand rule shall apply.
20.2.3 Seconding may not be conducted directly from a vehicle (including two-wheeled) whether stationary or moving.

So, not only must races provide water to runners, but runners can only receive the water in specified places along the route, from a designated person, who is standing still. Now you know.

From walking my first marathon through the dusty streets of Soweto in 2011, I continued what for me was my ‘Long Walk to Freedom,’ and completed the Ultimate Human Race, the Comrades Marathon in 2014. That same year I achieved another big goal, the New York City Marathon! Here is my story – BY ASTRID THOLE

I stood alongside 2000 other runners on a blisteringly hot day in Soweto on the 6th of November 2011, ready to take on the big challenge of walking my first marathon. Just to put you in the picture, I wasn’t a runner, I was a social, casual walker who had walked a few 30km races for fun. On the start line I had no idea what the race would entail, all I knew was that I planned to walk very fast, because I wanted to finish before the cut-off time of 6h30.

As the gun went bang, I set off, hundreds of runners sprinted past me. I felt scared and excited at the same time, and I was a mixed bag of emotions. I had no idea how hard it would be to walk 42km, and as I went through the tough route I discovered how hard it actually is! To say I was naïve was an understatement, yet, at the time I believed I could complete the race within the cut-off time.

So I walked and walked and walked. I had no idea about pacing, gels, hydration, splits, and all the other lingo that runners spoke and understood so well. I stopped and drank water at every table and soaked up the amazing vibe that is so well known at the Soweto Marathon, the ‘People’s Race.’ The friendliness that the people of Soweto show to each and every participant is overwhelming, making the race a special one.

ELATION IN SOWETO
I completed the race in a time of 6:15:48! I was absolutely elated when I received my beautiful medal, I felt such pride and excitement, I had done it. I was reminded of a quote from Fred Lebow, the founder of the New York City Marathon, “It doesn’t matter whether you come in first, in the middle of the pack, or last. You can say, ‘I have finished.’ There is a lot of satisfaction in that.” The whole experience proved to me that the body achieves what the mind believes and that I was not too old to set another goal and dream another dream.

That afternoon, inspired by my achievement, I watched the live broadcast of the 2011 New York City Marathon. I was glued to my TV, fascinated by the number of people who were participating – over 50,000 people! During the broadcast I decided that I would be setting some personal goals and dreams into action: I would do my first Comrades and NYC marathon in 2014, the year I turned 50, a milestone birthday for me, and what better gift than two medals, from Comrades and NYC.

So with that my running journey began, I joined a running club and started doing the hard work. In the beginning the transition from social walker to runner was a hard one, especially since I had never run a kilometre before the age of 48. I soon realised that to qualify for Comrades I would have to run/walk faster. I was lucky to be supported by another Comrades Runner at my club, Mike, and he pushed me and guided me to my goal. I always remember what he said to me, “Astrid, never give up. Give every part of the training your all. You can do it. Comrades is not for the faint-hearted, it’s tough, but you can do it. You will get your first medal in 2014, but you have to work for it and want it.”

THE ULTIMATE RACE
A lot of blood, sweat, tears and sacrifices later, I made it to the start in Pietermaritzburg on 1 June 2014. I lined up in my seeding pen with 18,500 runners around me. The pressure was on, this was not just any marathon, it was The Ultimate Human Race, a long and gruelling 89.2km awaited me. I prayed fervently before the start to finish in under 12 hours, to have the strength, faith, guts and determination to keep going…

My incredible journey from Pietermaritzburg to Durban began, and while running, I just kept saying to myself, “You were strong enough to get this far. You are strong enough to keep going. It doesn’t matter how fast or slow you are. As long as you keep moving.” I ran, I walked, I never stopped, and I had a wonderful first Comrades. No nausea, blisters, vomiting, dehydration or over-hydration, I was on a high from the first to the last kilometre.

I had written many positive affirmations which I took with me and I read and repeated these to myself all 90km. I needed to believe that I could and would finish, and I had to dig deep many times. Comrades tests your mental toughness, but I kept running despite the fatigue, pain and discomfort, and all around me runners kept motivating me, and that got me to the finish. I received my first Vic Clapham medal in a time of 11:40:03. To this day I cannot describe the emotions that I felt on that day!

A BITE OF THE BIG APPLE
Five months later, on Sunday 2 November 2014, I stood on the start line of the iconic and famous New York City Marathon. It was bitterly cold, three degrees with a head wind, and I was nervous as I was not used to running in such cold conditions, but I didn’t let it dampen my spirits. It was an out of this world experience, lining up alongside 50,869 runners, some of whom were elite international marathon runners, was amazing and surreal, and to participate in one of the world’s five major marathons was a dream come true. I was about to sight-see and experience the famous ‘city that never sleeps’ on foot, what an amazing adventure.

Donned in warm winter running gear with a South African running vest displaying my name, I set off to the sound of Frank Sinatra’s New York, New York, and it was magical, just as I watched on TV all those years ago, only now I was one of the 50,000-plus runners streaming across the Verrazano Narrows Bridge. Running the NYC marathon was everything and more than I dreamt it would be. I was overcome with emotion as the crowds shouted out my name and told me to keep going – they love South African runners and kept saying, “Astrid, you come from Mandela’s beautiful country, you must be so proud!” I did indeed feel proud and humbled to be representing my country, and the support I got from the American crowd was extra special. Then finishing in 5:15:45 in the world famous Central Park was something that I will never forget. I was so proud when they handed me that medal.

The experiences I had were extraordinary and so memorable, and to this day the NYC Marathon remains one of my all-time favourite marathons. What started with walking the Soweto Marathon ended three years later with Comrades and NYC Marathon medals! It just goes to show that if you can dream it, you can achieve it! And I am still dreaming… I have a few more goals to reach, including the Berlin Marathon, and aiming for my green number at Comrades before I hit 60.

Now that winter has come to an end and summer is approaching, it’s not just our clothing layers we need to shed as the days get warmer, we also need to shed our excess winter weight. – By Esmé Maré, Registered Dietician at Christine Peters & Associates

We gain or lose weight when energy intake and expenditure are out of balance. For example, when we consume a small amount of food and expend a high amount of energy, such as with running, we will promote weight-loss. When we consume a large amount of food and expend a small amount of energy, such as when we stay warm indoors, not wanting to exercise, then we will promote weight-gain. If we consume a moderate amount of food and expend a moderate amount of energy, then we will maintain our current weight.

Achieving a healthy body weight should be the aim of any weight-loss goal. A healthy body weight is a weight that promotes good eating habits, allows you to participate in regular physical activity such as running, and a weight that is acceptable to you and for your age. Here then are some tips on how to lose the weight you gained during winter, including how to do it healthily and how to keep it off whilst benefiting your running.

1. Set realistic Goals: An important part of any weight-loss plan is to set realistic goals. It can be frustrating making gradual changes to the body, but slower changes are much more effective in maintaining weight-loss over a longer period of time. This will also preserve your lean muscle mass needed for running. Remember, it takes time to adopt new eating habits. Aim for a weight loss of 0.5 to 1kg per week.
2. Never go shopping hungry: Plan your meals a week in advance. It’s easier to stick to a plan when you only have healthy food and drinks in your house.
3. Don’t starve yourself: Eat small, frequent meals every 2-3 hours to avoid feelings of food deprivation and to keep your metabolism going, and this will also ensure sustained energy levels. Starving yourself will slow down your metabolism and you will find it difficult to run on low energy levels.
4. Have Breakfast: Eat a healthy breakfast within an hour of waking up to jumpstart your metabolism and to promote weight-loss.
5. Plan your meals: Eat your meals and snacks only at set times in one location. Do not eat while studying, working, driving or when watching television. Don’t eat out of packets or take food straight from the fridge, rather dish up food onto a plate and eat with utensils. This will help you to keep track of how much you are eating and when you are feeling full.
6. Use smaller dishes: Eat your meals out of smaller dishes so they appear larger and you will eat less. The same can be done for drinks. Use a slender glass for all drinks except water.
7. Chew your food slowly: Aim to take at least 20 minutes to complete a full meal and stop immediately when you start feeling full. Store leftovers for your next meal.
8. Go for colour: To ensure that a variety of nutrients needed for a healthy body are consumed, half of your plate should be colourful vegetables or salad.
9. Choose good quality carbohydrates: Brown basmati rice, sweet potato, baby potatoes, quinoa, whole-wheat pasta, etc, should fill a quarter of your plate.
10. Choose good quality lean protein: Lean pork, beef, ostrich, chicken, legumes or fish should fill another quarter of your plate.
11. Cook with as little fat as possible: Remove excess skin and fat off meat and chicken before cooking.
12. Drink six to eight glasses of water daily: If you struggle to make this a habit, try drinking a glass of water before each meal and snack.
13. Get enough sleep: Remember to sleep at least seven to eight hours per night.
14. Reward yourself: When you do well with your nutritional programme, get a massage or buy yourself new clothes.
15. Prepare meals: Avoid purchasing high-fat, high-sugar foods by preparing healthy meals and snacks in advance.
16. Participate in regular physical activity: This will decrease body fat and help maintain or increase lean body mass.

When he started riding at the age of 14, Louis Meintjes never knew his cycling would take him across the world, but today he is considered the Golden Boy of South African cycling, a mere six years after turning pro, having already competed in the world’s biggest cycling tours as well as representing South Africa in the recent Olympics Games. – BY RACHEL PIENAAR AND ROXANNE MARTIN

As a young boy, Louis looked up to his father and saw himself following in his footsteps to become an engineer, but that all changed when he got on the bike. “I started cycling when I was in high school and at first it was just to enjoy riding, but I started racing soon afterwards, and it got more and more serious,” he says, adding that while growing up in Rustenberg, his family was supportive, but they were not avid cyclists themselves. “My brother also cycled a bit, but my family weren’t very sport-orientated.”

Entering races in those early days gave Louis a mark he could measure himself against, and that marker became higher and higher with each passing year, until eventually in 2010 he placed first in the National Junior Time Trial Championships, then added the Under-23 SA Road Champs title. That made him realise the time had come to take his cycling to the next level, and he decided to go pro.

The Road to Success
The next three years saw Louis competing all over Africa, setting the base for his future career. He enjoyed success at the African Continental Championships in 2011, placing second in the team and individual Time Trial, but it was in 2013 that the world really started taking
notice as he placed second in the World Under-23 Road Championships. It marked
him as someone to watch, and so began his road to international success.

In 2014, riding for MTN Qhubeka, Louis took part in his first Grand Tour, the Vuelta a Espana. It was a steep learning experience for the youngster, seeing how he could do against the world’s best. “It was definitely an eye-opener. A Grand Tour is tougher than anything else. You really need to be mentally strong and save energy all the time, because three weeks on the road is a long time. So, getting a fifth place on one of the toughest, and I think highest points, of the race was very encouraging,” says Louis.

It seems the international experience was just what Louis needed, and in 2015 he started his season off by winning the 30th edition of the Settimana Internazionale di Coppi e Bartali. “It was my first stage race win, which felt great and showed my progression year on year was improving. There were some really good climbers in the race, and I just tried something and was a little surprised to get away, but it felt very good,” says Louis. He also competed in his first Tour de France the same year, but had to retire due to illness. However, he didn’t allow that setback to affect him and bounced back to finish 10th overall at the next Vuelta a Espana. It was during this Tour that he also announced that he would be moving to Team Lampre-Merida for the 2016 season.

Slow Start to a Great Year
At the beginning of this year Louis set to work to make it a big year, and he says being based in Lucca, Italy with Lampre-Merida suited his training and lifestyle. “There are plenty of mountains around if I want to do a training camp, and the beach isn’t too far away if I want a break,” he explains. However, his initial results were doffed by bad luck, and Louis says he would rather forget the first few months of 2016.

After crashing out of the Volta a Catalunya on the third stage, his bad luck continued into the Vuelta al Pais Vasco, where he again had to pull out of the race and was unable to finish, but he says he moved beyond the disappointment by motivating himself to stay positive and believe in himself. “The start of the season was a tough one. I was affected by illness and cold weather, but my training remained good and was still better year on year, so I just stayed positive and kept believing. It was a good move, even though the season didn’t start off the best for me, because the team kept believing in me,” says Louis.

That belief paid off, because at this year’s Tour de France Louis really showed what he is made of as he became the first South African to place in the top 10 in the general classification of the race. He also placed second in the White Jersey competition, for the best young rider classification, finishing just behind Adam Yates. What was truly remarkable about Louis’ performance during the Tour was that he managed to stay with the lead group of contenders, featuring the worlds best in cycling, during the mountain stages.

When asked how he feels about his performance at the Tour, Louis says he actually hasn’t had time to process it all yet. “It took a few days after the race to sink in, but my racing schedule with the Olympics and the Vuelta a Espana has been hectic, so it hasn’t fully set in yet. I think I will be able to reflect on it properly when I am back home in South Africa at the end of the season.”

Rio Takes Centre Stage
Less than two weeks after the Tour, Louis found himself at the Rio Olympic Games, ready to compete with the best in the world in the hope that he could win a medal for South Africa. The 237km Road Race course was brutal, including an 8.9km climb with treacherous descents and a cobblestone section. That put paid to the hopes of many of the pre-race favourites, including Vincenco Nibili and Richie Porte, but Louis once again displayed his growing strength and experience to stay clear and post another top 10 finish.

“The course suited me and I wanted to use the form I had coming out of the Tour. I wanted to go there and be part of the action, so I am happy,” says Louis. In fact, he says that he enjoyed the experience so much that he is hoping to be able to go to the next Olympics in 2020. “It was a great experience and it is really a big occasion, like everyone talks about. I’d love to experience another Olympic Games.”

No Time to Catch a Breath
Once again there was barely time to take in this achievement as Louis made his way straight from Rio to Spain to take part in the Vuelta a Espana Tour. While this tour didn’t see him take another high general classification spot, Louis still saw the race as good preparation for the coming year. “It has been a very long season, so I felt some fatigue, and the heat also played a role, but it’s good to get the mileage in the legs as a base for the next season. My job is to ride my bike and deliver, so it’s important to stay focused on doing that,” says Louis.

Unsurprisingly, many a South African cycling pundit is now talking about the possibility of Louis becoming the first South African to win the coveted Tour de France title, given his rapid rise to cycling stardom this past year and his top 10 finish in this year’s Tour. When asked if he thinks he can live up to that expectation, Louis is typically humble but still shows his determination to succeed. “That would be nice, but that’s a very difficult task. It is certainly something I will keep working towards.”

Louis says he is also aware of the impact his success on the world stage will have on cycling in South Africa, and the inspiration it will provide to those wanting to follow him into a pro career in cycling, but he warns aspiring young riders to be realistic about their dreams. “It’s not easy to get into Europe from South Africa, which is where you need to be if you want to turn professional, but you need to believe in yourself.” That has clearly worked for him, and all South African eyes will be on him in the coming years, hoping to see him claim a podium finish in the Tour as well as many other titles and accolades.