Johannesburg – SA’s 10 000m champion Mbuleli Mathanga says he will not get a lot of opportunities to qualify for his first-ever Olympic Games and, as a result, he will have to use the upcoming Newton Classic Shoot-out to book his ticket to Tokyo, Japan.
The event will take place at Kings Park Stadium in Durban on May 29. Last month, the running sensation won the SA Champs 10 000m race at the SA Champs in Tuks, Pretoria.
He capped that performance at the same tournament by finishing second in the 5 000m, behind Precious Mashele, and that has really boosted his confidence.
The 5 000m men’s qualifying time is 13:22:50 and for the 10 000m the standard is 27:30:10.
“I am feeling very well and I am in the best shape,” Mathanga told Sunday World.
“The good performance at the SA Champs boosted my confi dence and my competitive edge.
“I hope that my body will respond well at the Newton Classic Shoot-out because you can never know. It happens to all athletes, but I can tell you that my preparations are going well and I am working hard with the guys that I am training with,” he said.
Mathanga has been joined in camp in Ndwendwe, KwaZulu- Natal, by his running mates Tshiamo Maribe, Sipho Mbanjwa and coach Mdu Khumalo.
“My dream is to qualify for the Olympics and to compete with the best international athletes and see how the competition feels.”
Follow @SundayWorldZA on Twitter and @sundayworldza on Instagram, or like our Facebook Page, Sunday World, by clicking here for the latest breaking news in South Africa. To Subscribe to Sunday World, click here.
Sunday World
