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Ellina Mhlanga–Senior Sports Reporter
PROMISING triathlete Anje Van As is hopeful of her participation at the 2023 Africa Triathlon Junior Cup Maselspoort in South Africa this month as she graduates from the youth category.
The event will be held at the same time as the South Africa Youth Championships in which Zimbabwe will field a team of 11 athletes in the Under-13 boys and girls as well as the Under-15 boys on February 26 at Maselspoort.
“It’s the first official time I am competing in the junior section.
“It’s going to be interesting because I am now Under-19. So I am no longer at the top of my age-group. So I am racing against really good athletes…So it’s going to be really interesting to see how I compete.
“It’s been a challenging few months. I have been battling with an off and on injury but I guess we will have to see how I do,” said Van As.
Van As made some positive strides in the youth category, winning several medals, including gold medals at the 2021 and 2022 Africa Championships.
Going into the junior section, she believes her past experiences provide a safety net as she begins a new chapter.
She is taking this event as platform to prepare herself for the 2023 Africa Triathlon Junior Cup Gqeberha in March, in which Triathlon Zimbabwe are set to field a team.
“I think it does give you a bit of a safety net, like mentally knowing that I have done well in this event or that event. So you sort of know what to expect, so then it gives you peace of mind.
“So I think for me it will probably be a test event to see what I need to work on and what I need to improve on for Port Elizabeth (Gqeberha). So hopefully if all goes well I should be able to work my way up from Maselspoort to PE, to do well,” said Van As.
Van As will be joined by Duwan Botha for this event.
National coach, Pamela Fulton, said both Van As and Botha are still young and this is a stepping stone to the future.
For Botha, it’s his second year competing in the junior category.
“So for Anje, first year moving up from the supersprint to the sprint event. So completely different ball game.
“She has had a bit of an injury on the running side. I know that her running is not up there but her swim is fantastic.
“And she is going there and she normally gets out of the water first with those top South Africans in the supersprint event. So it will be interesting to see how she does fare in the sprint event.
“She will be the youngest in the category, 16-year-old racing against 19-year-olds. So (it’s) all a learning curve for her and she is really strong on the bike.
“For Duwan, it’s his second year running Under-19. So he did compete last year, in that top field. So it was a bit of a wake-up call for him last year and now he is one year-older, a lot more mature, having a better idea of what to expect.
“But definitely the course of the juniors is a lot more technical… it’s at that top pace and it’s more technical on the cornering aspect. So those kind of issues are crucial.
“But they are still really young in that category and it’s always a stepping stone to the future, (to) get to the top Under-19 level,” said Fulton.
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