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Ellina Mhlanga Senior Sports Reporter
THE National Athletics Association of Zimbabwe have begun preparations for the forthcoming World Athletics Championships with the marathon runners scheduled to go into camp today in Harare.
The world meet is due to take place from August 19 to 27 in Budapest, Hungary.
The trio of Isaac Mpofu, Ngonidzashe Ncube and Fortunate Chidzivo have qualified for the marathon and will be under the guidance of head of the national event coaches team for middle and long-distance runners Benson Chauke during the camp. Mpofu and Ncube will represent the country in the men’s category while Chidzivo competes in the women’s section. “We have three athletes, Isaac Mpofu, Ngoni Ncube and Fortunate Chidzivo, those are the ones that qualified for the World Athletics Championships.
“So they are the ones getting into camp for World Athletics Championships preparation,” confirmed Chauke. The three athletes have been engaged in individual training programmes with Mpofu training in Hwange while Chidzivo and Ncube were in Harare.
Mpofu participated at the Econet Victoria Falls Marathon on Sunday and came fourth in the 21km race in 1hour 5minutes 20seconds.
The camp is running until their departure next month. Chauke said they are now stepping up to focus on the specifics ahead of the competition.
“Now our focus is looking at specific training. The programme we are going to implement is now specific. They are now speaking to what we intend to achieve as we polish towards the competition.
“The month of July, we are specifically looking at specific training, it isn’t generalised because the backbone is already there. So we are looking at specific training for the various aspects that the athletes are going to require in order for them to really get a good result.
“For example you are looking their speed workouts to their speed endurance workouts, you are looking at their flexibility, you are looking at their recovery, its specific, it’s no longer just general. “It’s specific, targeting specific time splits for track workouts, time splits for sped endurance on the road, on the track, hill workouts that are specific, gym workouts that are now specific, speaking towards the intended event. “And also starting our race modelling, whatever we do on the race, we pick our water, we also need them to start working on that, picking up their water, we need water on certain intervals when we are running, we putting water on certain intervals as they run, when they pick their water, when they pick, supplements, that now need to be done properly,” said Chauke. All the three athletes have represented the country at the World Championships before.
Besides the marathon runners, United States-based sprinter Tapiwa Makarawu has also qualified for the championships.
NAAZ president Tendayi Tagara said they are still hoping to have a few more athletes qualify.
“We may get athletes qualifying on rankings, especially those in the USA because there are some with good times . . . We only get to know in the last week of July. So we are still hopeful,” said Tagara. The qualification window for track and field events closes on July 30 while for marathon it closed on May 30.
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